⭐ HUNTERS ⭐ Urban Fantasy ⭐ IC [Still Open, See OOC]

[Lunas Legion]

Gabriella Sara Bianchi-Costa De Inferenza
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

"Mind if I come along? It's not like there's much to do here, and it's not that big of a deal if you don't-" That was an obvious lie, but it wasn't that big of a deal if one looked from the larger scale of things. "Want me to for whatever strange reason, I did suggest that to Candace earlier but we ran into you on the way." Gabriella finished. It was better than simply shrugging and saying she didn't mind, that would just be admitting defeat outright and she wasn't about to do that so soon after their conversation earlier.

Gabriella fell back into a contemplative silence, briefly entertaining ideas of what she'd do if Vivian said no. Maybe head off to track down Jordan although she was likely busy, maybe see if she could find the girl with the raven out of a sense of curiosity, or something else. She stood up from where she'd been leaning against the wall, briefly brushing herself down. Well, she'd figure something out. She always did.

[Forest State]

Vivian Shaw & Candace Marin
September 21

---

Vivian froze up for just a moment after Gabriella suggested coming with them, letting out a short sigh as she glanced back to Candace and then back to Gabriella. “I mean, I didn’t think you would want to come, I figured you would rather catch up with your sister or something,” she stated, even if she was basically making up an excuse on the spot to attempt to argue against Gabriella. “Just thought it would be nice to catch up with Candace for a bit without anyone around, but if you think you should come…”

“I wouldn’t mind it,” Candace herself said, smiling at Gabriella and interjecting into the conversation for the first time, not entirely aware of the game between Gabriella and Vivian - or rather, she wasn’t aware of the extent of it. She knew that there was a game, but it didn’t seem like she realized how it had escalated and how seriously it was taken by both sides.

“Er…” muttered Vivian, scratching her head as she realized she didn’t quite have a response that could get Gabriella off her and Candace’s back for now. “I guess the three of us heading out wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world,” she conceded, as much as she would’ve liked it to be just her and Candace.

[Durmatagno]

Victoria Aurelius Fawn
September 21st

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Victoria took the offered hand and shook it, something she didn't tend to do often. She preferred a more relaxed approach to friends, and possible friends. Still, it wasn't a big deal, it took literal moments to be over and down with. Victoria offered a smile to Freya as she stopped shaking her hand.

"Honestly not to many of them, I'm not the most social person. Couple of them are fun, hang out, play games, but I try to avoid getting sucked into their...drama. Been successful so far, but given the three of them, though I'm friends with two, it'll happen eventually. Left most of what friends I had back in California when I cam down here."

She shook her head at the last line, there'd only been a few, people she'd met on the street mostly, and Weiss. Ah whatever, it wasn't to big a deal, she still talked and played with them online, and over the break she'd found a new group to game with. A group with, mostly, those amazing French accents Victoria loved so much.

"Can't promise you'd get along with them, but you're welcome to hang, or come game with me if you want. Gaming, exercise, and some martial arts scrap are my main downtimes so...."

[Lunas Legion]

Gabriella Sara Bianchi-Costa De Inferenza
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

"Jordan said she's busy, we'll catch up when she's not being rushed around by Fox or whoever else she's been sent off to do whatever for." Gabriella gave a small shrug. "She's here and she's here for a while and we've got weeks off so there'll be plenty of time for that." It was a decent enough excuse for asking her not to come along, and she wouldn't have really minded catching up with Jordan instead given how long it'd been since they'd seen each other properly, but she'd already made time for that later with Jordan coming over so she could show her the illusion of the raven.

"Besides, you two can catch up afterwards. It's not like I'm around all the time and I do need to show Jordan the Red Mountain stuff later today which might take a while. Tiny details are important when it comes to that kind of thing." Gabriella continued, opening the door and standing in the open door. "Shall we?"

No doubt this was going to be awkward, but honestly, when weren't the three of them? Even without the revelations of earlier it would have been awkward at best, now it was just more awkward between the three of them, but especially between herself and Vivian. Not like they weren't used to it really.

[Lessoni]

Archibald "Archie" Lawson
Current Location: Gymnasium, Santa Marina Hunter Academy
...
"Well, whenever you're ready, Jack."

Jack Dredd

"I was born ready," said Jack with a slight grin. This hadn't really been what he was expecting, but either way, he was always eager to prove himself. He was glad they'd started on the physical side instead of martial; he was pretty damn strong, able to bench 305, but he was also a bit of a slow guy, in more ways than one.

Dropping to a perfect push up position, he started going at a moderate pace, not bothering to show off and go fast. He was going for endurance, and at this pace he thought he could go at least 15 minutes.

"Let's go Archie, keep up," he said with a grin much wider.

[Castelia]

"Let's go Archie, keep up," he said with a grin much wider.

"I'll do my best!" Archie replied, also with a grin on his face.

As soon as Jack started his push-ups, Archie began his own, too. Unlike Jack who was moving at a moderate pace, however, Archie was moving faster, though anyone who knew him would know that it wasn't done out of a desire to show off. Archie's hyperactivity was simply manifesting itself. It burned more energy, yes, but Archie himself was a ball of energy anyway.

Unfortunately, it also became clear which of the two freshmen was more physically conditioned. As the minutes went by, Archie began to slow down, until he was moving at a slightly slower pace than Jack, though he could still keep doing push-ups. Archie was beginning to tire, and though his spirit wanted to keep going, his body was starting to waver.

Archie's faster pace, though suiting his energy-intensive personality, did not suit his less active body. Despite the appearance of being physically active, Archie was trained more in magical activities, not physical activities. His spells were for long-range bombardment, not intensive close combat for which he only had one spell. Though he was trained in sword fighting, Archie's preferred combat style was to attack from long-range, and typically only used close combat as a desperate last resort.

Finally, after what seemed like 8 minutes after they began, Archie's body could no longer keep going and he was forced to give up.

"Jack, don't mind me. Just keep going. I'll do my best to hold out." Wheezing as he whispered those words, Archie did one more push-up, this one with visible difficulty, before stopping and holding his ground. His body was already hurting, but Archie did not let himself collapse. He was determined to complete the test.

[Forest State]

Vivian Shaw & Candace Marin
September 21

---

They started walking back out towards the exit of the apartment block, and to the parking lot outside specifically, where Vivian’s somewhat average Honda was parked. The tension in the air could be felt, of course, once again. Even if Candace didn’t seem like she realized how far it went. There was the feeling that there was a real battle going on, the feeling that… Each decision was carefully calculated like a game of chess. Remained to be seen who the winner was going to be, but Vivian seemed determined enough about it being her.

Or she had, anyway. She stopped in her tracks as they reached the parking lot, pausing and making an excuse. “You know, I actually remembered that I had something to do - something for some classes,” she said, something that wasn’t true but came off convincing enough, at least to someone that didn’t know the full context including the fight she’d just had with Gabriella, if one could call it that. It was a fight in a way, just a verbal one instead of a fight with fists and magic… Admittedly, though, it was rather subtle for one.

“You guys can go on and I can handle that, I guess,” she said, turning her back to the other two members of the group and starting off, stopping in her tracks for a moment and looking over her shoulder, a hint of regret in her eyes - she wasn’t the happiest about losing this specific round of the game between herself and Gabriella. Enough that she decided walking away entirely was the best option. “Have fun, I guess. You know where to find me later if you need me for something.”

Freya Jung
September 21

---

“My fighting style doesn’t exactly rely on martial arts but I do my best with fitness and the like. Always helps to have an extra edge on the enemy - sometimes, that can some from physical skills. You’d be surprised how many mages don’t bother with any of that because they can just use magic… But magic can’t get you out of every bad spot,” Freya said with a shrug. She returned to the original topic after a moment when she realized that she was going on a bit.

“What part of Cali are you from? I was around northern California for a bit after moving outta Chicago, worked on my magic a lot there. Been to Villanero too, you’d also be surprised how much easier it is to do stuff with mana up there… Different kinda place from most places,” she continued. “Anyway, all sounds good to me. I’m not the pickiest person. I’m just looking to have a decent time and make a bit of a difference here, really.”

[Lunas Legion]

Gabriella Sara Bianchi-Costa De Inferenza
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

Gabriella said nothing, just raising her hand in a wave as she turned to leave. "Well, that was... Unexpected, but I suppose if she's got something for classes it can't be helped really." Gabriella said, knowing full well that it was most likely just an excuse to bail on the pair of them. She really hadn't expected Vivian to just back off so easily, but it wouldn't always be like that, and there was no real sense of satisfaction from winning. If anything, she would've sighed, because she got the feeling this could be a long, attrition game between the two of them.

"So..." Gabriella began, turning away from watching Vivian leave back towards Candace. "My car or yours? I don't really mind." But even with Vivian gone, it wasn't like the awkwardness was gone, just... Changed, back to how it had been before they'd encountered her. She wasn't sure if it was more or less awkward with Vivian gone, but at the very least it saved them from trying to glare daggers at each others behind Candace's back.

[Forest State]

Candace Marin
September 21

---

“That was weird,” said Candace, maybe noticing the strange way that Vivian had left and how it seemed like she had just come up with something out of nowhere to get out of the situation that she had previously been enthusiastic about. Candace, on the other hand, let out a low sigh as she turned to Gabriella, offering a shrug. “Guess you can drive, but it doesn’t matter that much to me either way,” she added. “Don’t you uh….”

“Think that was a little strange, though? The way that she left, I mean,” Candace asked, following up on her statement from earlier as she started walking towards Gabriella’s car. “One moment she was ready to head out and it was her idea in the first place and the next moment she’s saying something that sounds like it’s just some rushed… I dunno, excuse, I guess you could call it.”

“I wonder if some of the stress is getting to her,” Candace added, opening the passenger side door of the car. “She has some shit going on, I know the… Problems with you guys are just one part of it. I just know that didn’t sound much like a real excuse to go.”

[Lunas Legion]

Gabriella Sara Bianchi-Costa De Inferenza
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

"Slightly more than a bit." Gabriella said in agreement, following Candace towards her car. It wasn't exactly hard to spot, wasn't like anyone else in the entire city drove a Porsche and one in hot pink at that. "It lacked the 'oh shit I just forgot something important' factor that kind of thing normally has, you know?" Gabriella continued as she pulled open the driver's door, shutting it behind her and dropping her keys into the cupholder.

"Maybe it's the stress, maybe it's the..." Gabriella paused, hesitating for a few seconds. "Problems, as you put it so elegantly, between the pair of us, more likely some combination thereof, maybe some stuff we don't know about on top of that." She stopped, the engine humming into life as she put her car into reverse and pulled out of where she was parked. "Not like anything can ever be simple and cut and dried when it comes to the three of us, can it?" She smiled slightly, turning to look to Candace as she shifted the car back into drive. "Any requests on where to first, if not I'll just do a loop around where the most interesting parts are and avoiding, well, you know, the bad parts. If I miss anything out say, you know the city better than I do by a large margin."

[Durmatagno]

Victoria Aurelius Fawn
September 21st

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"LA, well, at least partially. Live in England till I was six, then my Aunt and Uncle moved there for work, so I went with them. Don't think I've ever been further north than San Francisco, but I did visit Tijuana a few times with one of my girlfriends that had family down there."

Victoria shook her head, she doubted she'd ever been very far north at all, aside from her Scotland trips, but that was a different continent entirely. She stretched her arms a little as she talked, she wasn't good with idle time, even to chat. She was usually doing something else as well, even if that thing was...fantasizing.

"As for the martial arts, my fighting style rarely needs, them, but it's good exercise, and it's nice to have when I'm out of mana. Besides, there's some cute girls there, and it's a group locker room."

Victoria smiled at the thought, before shaking it away, that was a different topic, and tone entirely than the one they had now.

[Lessoni]

Bu Liao
Santa Marina Hunter Academy

---

The pair seemed enthusiastic participants and that was a good sign for they needed to be. However, Bu wondered how long that enthusiasm will keep up. He stood above them, watching both perform a respectable amount of repetitions. It was clear that they were fitter than your average Joe and this pleased Bu though he didn't show it, keeping a frown on his face. They needed to be at least that fit.

He was slightly surprised to see Archie being the first to stop. The 1st-year's leaner and smaller body would make inherently make it easier for him to complete cardiovascular exercises than the much bigger Jack. Yet it would be wrong to say Bu was disappointed. He watched Archie's response to being the first to stop. The freshman appeared unperturbed by Jack beside him, forcing himself to maintain isometric contraction as he awaited Jack to finish.

Bu nodded in satisfaction. It was not a competition so he shouldn't be bothered. The more pressing matter for Archie was his maintaining his position for Bu knew being stationary in pushup position was just as hard as doing the pushups themselves. The pain was visible on Archie's face but likewise, the determination was there too.

Alas, the lactic acid would be welling up within Archie's arms and eventually, he'd be unable to hold himself up. Bu looked over at Jack. Would he keep doing his pushups or not? He'd find out soon.

Jack Dredd

Engrossed in the workout as he was, he almost didn't notice Archie slowing down. It was mostly by luck that he noticed at all, after he looked up and caught Archie out of the corner of his eye. Glad his face was already red so Bu wouldn't see his slight blush, he slowed his pace a little, not wanting to embarrass Archie.

"How much longer we gonna do this?" he managed to say as he went down in a pushup.

[Forest State]

Candace Marin
September 21

---

“I dunno, instead of driving around without an aim it might be nice to check the beach out. I mean, I was at the beach in Nice a bunch… But I haven’t been to the beach here in a while, might be fun,” said Candace, shrugging and climbing into Gabriella’s car, after spending a few moments hanging around and looking at the exterior. She’d forgotten how… Obnoxious it was. It was bright, somewhat garish at least in her opinion, but Gabriella liked it enough so she supposed it wasn’t the worst thing in the world. Even if it was pretty far from her personal taste - for herself, she had a deep blue Maserati, one of the things she’d actually accepted rather than turned down from her parents.

She didn’t like taking from them too much and feeling like she owed it to live up to their expectations in turn, but there were certain times where she had decided that turning them down wasn’t the best option. The car had been one of them. She pulled her mind off that subject, though, as they started moving and heading towards the Santa Marina beach. She stared out the window absentmindedly for the first part of the ride, watching the scenery go by. Really, Santa Marina was a mix of different things, and it could be seen in the way the city was laid out and the architecture that made it up.

The urban planning didn’t follow a uniform design but rather had some sections of square shaped sections of streets and gridlock, while other areas had more narrow and winding roads, like one might find in a city in Europe, and this largely changed based on the background of the different places. There was the Italian and German quarters where immigrants had come over from these European countries, bringing many mages with them and helping to give the city its magical acclaim… There were the Hispanic parts of town that often times reflected the earliest days of the city, back when the Spanish owned it and put quite a bit of work into it, something that still showed in the style of buildings and streets, with Spanish language signs even being seen in some places.

There were more run down parts of town mixed in with the nicer parts, certain avenues or rail lines marking the differences between them - there were some areas of Santa Marina where you didn’t spend too much time around the street corners, and where you didn’t stop at red lights unless you had to, and other sections such as Calero Hills, the one they were coming from, where one could find the rich and their families living in peace in gated communities, with enough police around to deal with whatever popped off… It wasn’t really that out of the usual to see magic in this city. It was just another peculiarity, like everything else around here. Santa Marina was many things, but it wasn’t average, and this trip from the west end of the city to the Atlantic coast on the other side would take them through several of these neighborhoods, both good and bad ones.

Candace pointed out some of the sights that they’d spot as they passed through, subtly gesturing to a group of men standing around one of the corners on the street while they were stopped at a red light. “Imperiales 13… You can tell from the black and green in the clothes,” Candace pointed out the name of the gang that the group was in. It was one that had been around Santa Marina for a while. It was just surprising to see them not that far off from Calero Hills, the good part of town. “Those guys don’t play around,” she added, elaborating further. “They’re under the banner of the Mexican Mafia, actually…”

How did she know all this? Well, she had spent enough time in the streets - hadn’t been involved in crime per say, not directly, but she’d rubbed shoulders with plenty of people who had. And she had a good idea of who was worth messing with and who wasn’t. Except, as she thought about it, she just felt her mind returning back to another subject that she had left when they left the gates of Calero Hills and started towards the beach. “Man, I’m remembering this time me and Vivian ended up in a fist fight with some of those La M guys in New York City… At a late night party, cops ended up showing up, since you know, it’s New York, you can’t breathe without the cops getting on your ass… Anyway…”

She let her voice trail off as she realized she was going slightly off subject and going a bit too deep into the memory - not everything was relevant. “You weren’t there. Obviously. But man, I miss it. Miss when things weren’t so fuckin’ awkward between the three of us. I don’t know what it’s all about really, or exactly why you guys act like you can’t stand each other and you’ve gotta fight just to be around each other and not bite each other’s heads off, but I can still remember when I could do cool shit like that without worrying about what the other one of you is going to say after, or how you’re going to react after without saying anything.”

Finally, she stopped speaking, placing a hand on her chin as they started moving again, the red light having turned green. She still wasn’t sure if this was the right time or the right place to have this talk, but she figured it was worth getting this off her chest. “Or am I just being stupid?” Candace asked curiously. “I mean, if I am, feel free to tell me, just felt like… I should get this off my chest or something. Viv acting strange today had me thinkin’ about it, I guess.”

Freya Jung
September 21

---

Freya nodded, her reaction not doing much to give away her own ideas about Victoria’s preferences, which she noticed from the conversation - and she didn’t say anything that would give away her own. Perhaps it was intentional, perhaps it wasn’t. Either way, she smiled slightly. “I mean, fit a bunch of people from mostly rich backgrounds that have always been taken care of and squeeze em into a smallish academy like this and you’re always going to have a lot of cute people,” she said with a hint of cynicism in her voice, and a statement that perhaps showed a slight opening into the way that she looked at things - at the world.

She seemed to view the world as a place where there were haves and have-nots, and she knew which side of the equation she was on. It seemed she was almost fixated slightly on the other side, however, even if it couldn’t be determined just what her feelings were on it. Whether those feelings were of acceptance and resignation or if they were brought up frequently out of a desire to do something about it.

“Been to some parties in LA, it’s nice I guess, Villanero was better but that’s in a different way. LA is a city for normal people. Villanero, however… It’s very much a mage’s city. You should go there if you get a chance - it’s something to experience, even if most of the people around there are just living in their ivory towers and ignoring the rest of us plebs that don’t have the luck of going there full time,” Freya continued, shrugging.

“So you thinking of joining that team?” she asked, raising an eyebrow and referring to the magical combat team which was going to compete against the teams from other schools. “I mean, if you’re after cute girls… I imagine the locker room in there has a few smokeshows,” she added slightly teasingly, punching Victoria on the arm slightly. “Me, I’m still considering it. It’d make me stand out, sure… But I don’t know if the schedule’s for me. They do ask a lot of you. Or at least more than the average student ‘round here.”

She looked down at her phone to check the time after posing the question, before sliding it back in her pocket, looking up to Victoria - and she did have to look up, considering her height. “I’m headed back soon to work on some cutting edge magic shit. I don’t know if you’ve got something planned or anything but if you wanna just chill in my room and watch me work, you can feel free. Gets lonely doing it all by myself. And I’ve got a cool trick or two that I’ve been working on that I’m sure you’d like to see.”

The offer did sound genuine. Like it was being offered not because Freya was looking for something but because she didn’t want to be alone, in what was a solitary work for her - magic tended to be conducted in groups, but it was somewhat understandable that she ended up alone working on hers, based on what she had said about her thoughts on other mages. Didn’t seem like she was the biggest fan of them.

So maybe, because of that, she was one of the types of mages that believed in going her own way rather than working in a group when conducting research, learning new skills, and generally working on the things that made up the mage life - other than hunting, which only happened some of the time even for the most experienced Hunters. One needed, after all, to build up skills before they could use them to protect others.

[Lunas Legion]

Gabriella Sara Bianchi-Costa De Inferenza
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

"Beach it is then." Gabriella said, pausing briefly to enter it into her car's sat-nav, not exactly the best at finding her way around cities, even one like Santa Marina where she'd lived for almost a year. She'd spent three years living in London but even then she'd relied on her phone to find her way to places from a map, but in her defence London was much larger than Santa Marina and even more confusing in layout with far more places she had no business being.

She drove off in silence, keeping the radio off, the car silent but for the thrum of the engine. Her music taste didn't exactly mix with Candace's at all, and she wasn't about to subject her to it so silence it was.

She couldn't say she really liked the city, or, for that matter cities in general; she'd grown up in the countryside after all, and ultimately she'd always prefer that to the city, but she kept her eyes focused on the road. If Candace saw anything interesting, she'd probably point it out. Eventually, Candace did, but it wasn't really something of interest to her. She wasn't the type of person who paid much attention to gangs, lumping them all together mentally, not really caring about what gang they were from or what. But then she strayed onto other topics, and

"Better to talk about it than to bottle it all up." Gabriella said as the car in front of them moved off, engine revving up as she accelerated away. "You're not being stupid, Candace. I... Don't exactly like everything being awkward either, but it isn't just something we can get rid of." Gabriella let out a long sigh, eyes still focused on the road, not wanting to look at Candace as she talked. "Maybe you should just... Be yourself, stop worrying how either of us is going to react or what we're going to say whenever you want to do something. Vivian's been your friend for who knows how long, I haven't been for anywhere near the same length of time but... We're your friends, Candace. We may not like absolutely everything you do, but we'll put up with it regardless. Maybe complain a bit, say how stupid it was, probably whine a little at you in my case at least, vent our frustrations, but we'll apologise after and learn to accept it in time." She knew she'd managed with Candace's weed habit. She didn't exactly like the stuff at all, but she'd learned to put up with it. "You could talk with Vivian when we get back maybe, when I'm not around, but..." Gabriella shrugged. "I don't know what to do either, really, Candace."

[Theyra]

Tavian Arcos
Santa Marina, Septermber 21st, 2020

Tavian had been walking around the campus for a while now. Figuring out where everything is was not that hard, he was glad though it was not like when he was trying to find his way around the Dubrovnik Hunter Academy. Maybe it was him being nervous on his first day but, for the life of him, it was hard to find everything. At least he was not late to any of his classes. Tavian wondered how the teachers will be like as he walked by one of the buildings.

A small chuckled came out of his as he remembered his favorite teacher at Dubrovnik. Vedran Komušar, a native Croatian, it was unexpected that a Hunter Teacher would double as a comic book writer. Even sometimes handed out his comics to the class and his comics were good. They were the first comics he ever read, Tavian did not have an interest in comics before. Preferring to read books instead but, Vedran's comics got him hooked. Tavian even brought some of them with him to Santa Marina. He started humming quietly an old song from his homeland. Normally he did not like most of the old songs but, this one had a special place in his heart. It was the first song he ever heard as a child, his mother would often sing it was he played with his siblings. She stopped singing it after what happened with his uncle.

Tavian does not know why and he started to think about his family. Becoming absorbed in his thoughts, to the point that Tavian was not paying attention to where he was going and bumped into someone as he turned the corner. He quickly snapped back to reality and spoke apologetically with a Romanian accent. "Oh, sorry for bumping into you".

[Lessoni]

Bu Liao
Santa Marina Hunter Academy

---

"Both of you stand up. Now."

A silent Bu stared at each one for a moment, his eyes dagger-thinned. Then he stepped forward and placed a hand on Archie's shoulder. It was a firm hand, the weight behind it definite, his forearms strewn with steel-like muscles. The sight of him was significantly aggravated by his nakedness. It would appear to an observer that Bu was a tattooed Triad gangster extorting money from a skinny freshman while a cliche giant of a buddy overlooked the whole affair. But there was no hostility in his hand and this was made apparent when he nodded and said, "Well done."

He left it at that, not bothering to elaborate on what exactly was well done. Archie would understand that he had performed something well and it was up to him to figure out what exactly it was. The Chinese were not exactly big on praise and this extended from the upper peaks of which Shaolin culture resided to the 2-storey home of a regular family at ground-level. In fact, Bu was rather generous with his praise unlike most of his bald compatriots. In a manner similar to how he preferred not to be addressed as 'sifu', he acknowledged the culture that raised him up but maintained a distinction between the collective consciousness and his own.

Stepping back from Archie, he turned his eyes on the much larger Jack. Placing a hand on that man's shoulder would be exponentially harder but Bu had no intention of doing so. Folding his arms behind him, he shook his head, "Tsk. Tsk. Aiyah, Jack."

He walked back to the front of both of them, an action that could be interpreted as him not wanting to pat Jack on the shoulder though the truth was that Bu didn't like feeling inferior to another male, not that anyone else in the campus knew. Except maybe Aia, Bu did enjoy intimidating men other than him who asked her out. Brocode? That was a Western concept.

"Mr Jack. And you listen too, Mr Archie." Bu waited until he was confident he possessed the young men's utmost attention before continuing, "In Shaolin kungfu, you put your all in your exercises. There is no 99% nor even 99.99% up in the mountains. I demand 100% in every exercise you guys do. Anything less, you can leave my club."

He gestured to Jack and spat, "You dare slow your pace in front of me? That not only insults me but it also insults Archie. Tsk." Shaking his head vigorously, he took a breath then lowered his voice to a gentler tone, "Look. It's good that you recognized Archie's importance to the given mission. I specifically ordered you 2 to stand up at the same time. Both of you kept that in mind and that's good. Your teammates will be integral to your success in the tryouts and in the sport itself. What you should have done instead, Jack, when you saw Archie having expended everything he had, you should've increased your pace to catch up to Archie so that the 2 of you could finish before one gave in to the pain. But the fact that you had the audacity to slow down and question my order out of concern for Archie tells me a few things: You don't trust Archie's will to stay up. You are willing to relinquish your 100% during a workout. And, worst of all, you question the order you were given while you are in the moment of performing said order."

Rolling his neck, loosening the tightness that had gathered in his muscles from inactivity, he closed his eyes for briefly before opening them again. He shrugged, more a stretch than a gesture, and said, "Thankfully, we are going to work on these things starting today. Your flaws. Archie's flaws. We gonna work on them and work on them good. Oh, and by the way, this is what Shaolin monks call a pushup."

Dropping to the floor, Bu pressed 2 fingers from each hand against the surface and in a display of extreme functional strength, performed a single pushup with only those fingers. Then he performed additional repetitions with each one that followed was a variant of the finger pushup. When he had gone through a dozen finger pushup variants, he flipped backward, hopping back upright.

"Sooner or later, you guys will be doing these. It depends on you if its a sooner or a later. Though the 'sooner' I'm talking about is a 'later' in Western time. I struggled with the standard finger pushup for months. Almost broke my bones a few times too, heh. Anyways, the test was to see if you are stronger or weaker than the average American. Congrats, you've passed. But I think you'll come to regret passing the test."

Bu began extending then retracting his arms in a circular motion around his upper-body. Undulating his body, sucking his chest then back out, he bent down and tapped his toes before returning upward to repeat his motion.

"Just copy my movement. If they are too hard, adapt them to your own body. You'll need your muscles thoroughly prepared before a Shaolin workout. Same goes for me too though I'll be doing a lite version of my usual workouts with you guys. But none of you are ready for a Shaolin workout, not yet at least. But I think one of my warmups will suffice as the karate club's first group workout session. A warmup, monk-style. Osu! Let's work!"

Bu's warmup would initially consist of stretches that targeted all parts of the body. It would be easy-going at first, even for the average Joe, but as he progressed through it, the movements became much more forceful. There were the archetypal Japanese karate punches except Bu performed each repetition with multiple punches from both arms near-simultaneously, accompanied by strong grunts. Warmup for the legs was composed of squatting low-kicks from various angles to middle kicks to high kicks that reached above his head. In between each set, there were periodic breaks in action where Bu performed deep, controlled breathing exercises, each exercise done with a different pose from overhead arm raises to completely lowering his legs until he was in a literal split.

The 'warmup' was an extensive calisthenics workout mixed with fundamental kungfu techniques. Though they'd only just met Bu that day, the journey to becoming disciples capable of going toe-to-toe with a professional fighter had already begun.

Jack Dredd

Jack blushed a darker shade than the exercise had left him with at Bu's admonishment, dropping his head ever so slightly.

"Sorry. Just... didn't want to embarrass him, is all," he said in a small voice. "Won't happen again."

After saying that, Jack began copying Bu's movements. He quickly realized how hard a Shaolin monk worked as he felt himself stretch in ways he never had before. Still, he refused to allow himself to stop, determined to earn the second year's respect. He mostly succeeded, if rather sloppily, until Bu began his series of kicks, which Jack knew he wouldn't be able to do. Trying his best, the highest he was able to reach was about halfway up his chest.

[Durmatagno]

Victoria Aurelius Fawn
September 21st

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Who said anything about it being the academies martial arts? No, I go somewhere with a bit less pomp in the air, and more rough around the edges."

Victoria commented first on Freya speaking of the group she said had cute girls. No, she preferred something rougher, grimier, and without the ego that many mages had. Besides, there few if any knew of her true nature, and so she was all the more impressive. It felt nice, getting actual praise for once instead of the disparaging comments and cynicism from her aunt and uncle. She pushed that thought away, they were far away now, and she had new friends, and new faces, she needed to stop worrying about what they thought.

"Yeah, I should probably visit at some point, but...let's just say I'm glad to be read of California, and my half sister is the only reason I even bother going back."

Now she was clearly speaking on Villanero, she'd never had to much interest in going. Probably should, but that didn't change that she didn't enjoy the idea much, mostly because it meant more pomp, ego, and going back to California. She shuddered at the thought while she grabbed her gym bag. One day of only light exercise wouldn't kill her, she could be done for now. Maybe not for the day, but...for now. Either way, this room saw plenty of her.

"And yeah, I'm considering joining the team, not just for that, but because..well I like challenges, be it one for me alone or against others. There's something to be said for the feeling of knowing you've gotten better at something, if only by a little. It's part of why I came here at all, magic is a much different challenge from engineering and mechanics. Though I did get drawn back into the world of metal...."

She ignored the light punch, it was a gesture she'd gotten used to in the past. Freya seemed to be friendly at least, and her newest offer was genuine. Victoria considered it, and then smiled and nodded. She pulled out a notebook from her gym bag, sometimes she worked on things when resting, or something else. She wrote down her number on a piece of paper, and held it out to Freya.

"I've got a thing or two to check on first, but I'll stop by and hang, text me the dorm number, and I'll be there when I'm done."

Mostly Victoria just wanted to grab a better bite to eat, and maybe see how here friends online were doing before she headed over, but she was telling the truth. The small pre-cooked pie she'd ate had helped tide her over, but she was still hungry.

"Shouldn't take me more than twenty or thirty minutes."

[Forest State]

Candace Marin
September 21

---

“I mean, it just feels like no matter which way I go I’m going to be rubbing someone the wrong way, I guess I just don’t like that part of it. I could try to smooth things over with Viv a bit after… Earlier, but it feels like I’m going to end up right back at square one because it’s going to make things weirder with you and then I’m going to have to try and fix that and we’re not going to make any progress on any side…” Candace said, before she stopped herself, sighing and resting her head back without saying anything else.

“Yeah, it’s stupid. If we can’t do anything about it, there’s no point bitching about it. Unless I just want to quit doing anything,” she continued, the frustration evident in her voice even without her raising it. “I want to be myself but I care about you guys too, can’t say that for a whole lotta people. I don’t… I don’t fuckin’ like seeing you guys upset, I don’t like being the reason for it, and I still want to be close with you guys, it’s just…”

“Like I said, everything seems to lead into another thing.”

As they kept driving, getting closer to the suburbs and the Santa Marina Boardwalk, Candace ceased talking all together and put her earbuds in, looking down at the screen of her phone as she picked something out of one of her playlists, losing herself in that and deciding it wasn’t worth arguing all that much more. Even if it wasn’t a real argument in the first place. Either way, though, she knew there wasn’t exactly much they could say that would just make the problems go away.

NOW PLAYING: Runaway - PLAYLIST: feelings

---

Take me, away from here
Everybody so fake
Everybody so fake, I swear
But I don't wanna go back there
Everybody so fake
Everybody act like they care
Take me, away from here
Everybody so fake
Everybody so fake, I swear
But I don't wanna go back there…

She supposed the song did reflect somewhat on her situation. Well, situations. There was the contrast between her and other mages that had led to her heading to become an amateur Hunter rather than a sanctioned one in the past, before she had come here - and she wasn’t in Santa Marina entirely by her own choice, if someone asked her what she wanted to be doing, there was a decent chance she would say that she wanted to head back to the little group of amateurs she’d ran with. The one that Vivian had also been in. It was more dangerous, sure, but at least there the people were more down to earth than the types that usually ended up at places like this. And then to a lesser extent, there was also the matter of not being able to feel like she could be real around the people she was closest to, and not feeling like they could do the same without causing trouble with each other…

But these were problems she could worry about another time. Wasn’t like bringing it up anymore would help the already declined mood.

Freya Jung
September 21

---

“I’ll send you that text,” Freya said as she turned to head out, stepping away from the gym and entering the hallway system once again. She started towards the outside of the building before going in the direction of the north apartment block and heading to find her room, stopping to remember the room number herself - she hadn’t been here for very long. Less than a day, actually, and getting used to it all could be overwhelming for some. She wasn’t ‘some people,’ though, and she was handling the move decently enough. No regrets so far, although it was early enough that any… Problems likely just hadn’t shown themselves yet.

When she did reach her apartment, she started to clean up a bit, moving around some of the various things she had brought into the room, before she found herself approached by a peculiar being, the raven that had been on her arm in Villanero. This time, the raven was resting on a desk in front of her, head turned so one of its eyes was looking at her. And Freya didn’t feel like she was doing anything unusual as she talked to the thing. “I have someone coming over. I don’t know if you want to do your thing, really. Or if you want to be around here at all,” she said, offering a shrug as she continued working on the room.

“I suppose I could go somewhere else,” the raven spoke to her in a nonchalant manner, or at least as much as that could be said for a talking bird which had obvious magical origins. “Or perhaps the person that you have coming over wouldn’t mind…”

“I’m just being safe. It’s not exactly every day that people run into a talking raven,” said Freya, drawing what seemed like a shrugging gesture of sorts from the bird.

“Correct.”

She walked over to the window, opening it up wide enough that the bird could fly out and into the open air, heading off into the distance before Freya closed the window once again and turned around to walk back towards her desk, which she had been cleaning off. She sent the promised text to Victoria first, however, telling her the right room number to show up at. Now, she just had a little bit of cleaning to finish during the few minutes it’d be before her guest showed up, and she could work on her magic...

[Lunas Legion]

Gabriella Sara Bianchi-Costa De Inferenza
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

Gabriella said nothing, just letting Candace talk and then not responding as she put her earbuds in, making it clear they weren't going to be talking anymore. Not that she really knew what to say, letting out a low sigh as she turned her attention back to the road. She wasn't about to force a conversation over this, not when Candace had made it clear she didn't want to have it.

It was a messy and complex situation, at least in terms of finding answers, and Gabriella had none to give. Not here, not now, at least. Everything led into something else, issues piled upon issues, problems upon problems and no solutions in sight.

She turned her attention back to driving, blotting out all thoughts and idle musings, ignoring the awkward silence that had settled over the car. The city passed her by as the drove, the neighborhoods blurring together before her, unfamiliar with them as she was, only the differences in architecture and people really registering to her but even then barely so, as she didn't really pay attention.

Even as she spotted the sea at the end of the street, Gabriella didn't say anything, didn't point it out, she just drove until the sea was in front of them, the beach between them and it. She turned left, driving along the seafront for a short distance before pulling into a car park. She pulled the handbrake on, engine dying down into silence as she turned and climbed out. She turned towards the sea, stepping forwards, eyes locked on the distant horizon as she stepped towards the beach, stopping where the asphalt turned to sand. It was quiet; it was late September after all, off-season for tourists, and a Monday besides. She said nothing, just clasping her hands behind her back, back straight and looking out to sea.

---

Olympia Galatas
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

Olympia hummed to herself as she walked, not really paying much attention to where she was actually going. It'd finally settled in that she was actually here and actually doing this, someone who'd taught herself everything she knew. Sure, she was probably going to be far from the most powerful mage among the freshmen, and she knew that, but that just meant she'd need to get creative with what she had.

Adversity bred strength and stuff like that.

Of course, waxing philosophically while walking was far from the best way to actually be paying attention to where one was going, and so as she turned the corner she all but slammed straight into someone. She stepped backwards, keeping her balance by pushing out a leg behind her.

"Nah, it's fine." Olympia said, hand moving in a dismissive gesture. "Wasn't paying attention, probably should've been. You new here then?"

[Recuecn]

Tristan Glesbrecht
Calero Hills, Semptember 21

---

The inhabitants of the Calero Hills district would describe their part of Santa Marina as "pretty", or as "a nice little neighborhood", in exactly the the right tone of voice to let you know that they lived in a gentrified, high-end suburb and were proud of that accomplishment. Gated communities, SUVs, side-walks lined with palm trees: the town had dived headfirst and wholesale into the wealthy Florida aesthetic. It wasn't that hard to tell, then, that the young man walking down the sidewalk wasn't from around here. His clothes, although they weren't dirty or out of style, per se, didn't seem quite typical--the cap he wore certainly stood out--and their wrinkles revealed that the boy was probably living out of a suitcase. As car after car drove past, carrying students moving in to the Hunters' Academy along with all their personal belongings, he was the only one who walked, carrying a small trunk with him.

Of course, at a place like the Santa Marina Hunters' Academy, it was to be expected that strange people would come from all over the world. The town was used to that, so by comparison, this young man really didn't stand out too much at all. Only a closer look might have revealed that there really was something mysterious about him. It was hard to put your finger on without starting a conversation, but the glint in his eye seemed otherworldly, somehow. Perhaps as he moved he seemed strangely graceful? No, you must be imagining that. He looks like a pretty normal kid after all. He walked through the gate past the sign that read SAN MARINA HUNTERS' ACADEMY and headed into the administration office.

"Tristan Glesbrecht? I'm here to register or move in for the school year."

"Can I see your id?" The administrative assistant behind the desk asked. Tristan handed over his passport. The assistant opened it and looked at his photo, glancing up to compare it to him. It was the same kid, that was for sure. He had the same sandy blond hair, the same straight, small nose, the same little smile... "Welcome Tristan. Here's the key to your room, number two thirteen. You'll be in the north apartment block"--they leaned forward to point out the window at what was obviously the only apartment block on campus--"right over there. Feel free to move in as soon as you like. Besides that you don't have to get too much done today, so feel free to relax, explore... I think the only thing you might've missed earlier was an announcement about sign-ups for the magic combat team and the cheer-leading squad, but those aren't until Monday, so you're fine. Welcome to the Academy!"

Tristan took the key with a smile. "Thank you, I'm glad to be here!" But as he turned to head to his new room, his smile disappeared. As he marched across campus, his expression was grim and set--he appeared every bit a man on a mission. Only the everlasting twinkle in his eye indicated that finding his room and unpacking his trunk wasn't a matter of life or death.

Room 213. Tristan wondered about the unlucky number. Surely at a place like this where everyone lived and breathed magic, the school would have thought to have the room numbers skip from 12 to 14? Apparently not. Tristan shook it off. Not much he could do about it. Unlocking the door and pushing it open, he stepped into the room and set down his trunk. The room was painfully plain and empty. It certainly didn't feel like he'd hoped a new home would... but perhaps some decoration could fix that. The room was a double, with furniture laid out symmetrically--a closet, dresser, bookshelf, bed, chair and desk on each side. Mentally, Tristan instantly chose the right hand side. Maybe that would cancel out the bad luck of the room number? He stepped forward to the end of the room to pull open the shades of the room's sole window.

The window was decently large and looked out to the south over the rest of campus. At the other end of a small quad were scattered the academic buildings--one, with a soaring clocktower, trapped your gaze--but beyond that you could catch a glimpse of another large building that looked like it might be a concert hall. To the left, a fitness trail wrapped around the edge of campus. Tristan certainly appreciated the view--it made him feel at home and it made his new room as a whole feel a lot less claustrophobic. He opened the window to let in some air and leaned out a little ways.

Already the campus was bustling with returning and arriving students. First-years, still with their families, carried their belongings towards the dorm, while upperclassmen who already knew the school could be seen heading for the cafeteria or lounging in the quad. A small commotion was happening on one of the sidewalks. Overhead, a raven flew past. Tristan closed his eyes and breathed in the air. A faint sea breeze could be felt coming away from the east, towards downtown Santa Marina. Tristan pulled his head back through the window, but left it open.

Returning to his trunk, he set it on the bed he had chosen and opened it up. Some clothes went in the dresser. A thin, leather-bound tome went in the drawer of his desk, along with a knife and a pouch full of miscellaneous magic paraphernalia. Next out of the trunk were some sheets, which went on the bed. Hiding underneath them was a pistol and a box of ammo. Tristan had been told he might need them, but he still kept worrying that he wasn't supposed to have them here--he put them on the top shelf of his closet, out of sight. Other than that, there wasn't much--besides some school supplies, which he left on top of the desk, pretty much everything else went in the closet. Tristan looked at the blank wall above his bed. He'd have to find something to put there, but he could take his time. He wanted to do that right.

Tristan took a seat on his bed, having shoved his suitcase underneath. He put his chin in his hands and heaved a sigh. That was that. He was moved in. Tristan was painfully aware that for him, moving in wasn't a big process. He didn't have much he needed to unpack. He didn't have much any way you looked at it. If it wasn't for his gift from the fairies, a couple things he'd nicked from them when he left, and then the things the mad he'd met had so graciously given him, he wouldn't have anything to his name besides the clothes on his back.

Tristan thought ahead to his expectations for the school year, trying to guess what it might be like, what might happen. Training to be a hunter? That was crazy! Tristan had heard of the hunters, but besides a couple memorable occasions, he had never seen or interacted with them. He'd never thought that he'd become one. He wasn't too worried about the difficulty; he thought he could handle it. But he was painfully aware that while his other classmates would see it as some privilege or long-time goal, he was doing it merely because he had no clue what else to do. He'd had nowhere to go before the wizard had suggested SMHA, and he'd clung to the opportunity like a lifeline. Not only would he be taken care of at school, he'd be kept busy. And that was definitely something he needed.

Already, having sat in his room for five minutes only, Tristan grew restless. Especially on the first day, it felt like he should be doing something. He stepped out into the hall, locking the door behind him, with only a vague idea of walking through the building or maybe around campus, hoping to run into someone to talk to or something to do.

[Sraelyn]

Viktor Farkas
Santa Marina Hunter Academy, September 21st

---

Stepping out of the cab, Viktor walked through the large gates in front of him. Once across the umbral, he stopped for a moment and took a long, deep breath, savoring the air as much as possible. It smelled just like he thought it would, like shit; stifled, humid, polluted, fume-permeated shit. Being plucked directly from the dense forests and deep valleys near the Carpathian mountains, only to be dropped at a bustling city half-a-world away was a strange experience. Santa Marina certainly was a long way from home. The car ride from the airport to the academy itself was enough to cement some notions in his mind. Mainly, although he couldn’t say he shared, he understood that certain longing towards America that many people had back in eastern Europe. Gone were the concrete Soviet-era apartment buildings, the old cars, the run-down roads and parks. He couldn’t really blame the people that so terribly desired the ostentatious life of Calero Hills, the large houses and fast cars. It was reasonable for the meek, the non-mages, to forever wander in search of that oh-so-wonderful mirage. It was the duty of those abled, of those magically capable, to guard the rest, to hunt on and protect those dreaming in obvious comfort from the threats that lurk outside.

Viktor made his way across campus towards the administrative building, moving through the many groups of people. Most of them seemed to be freshly arrived first year students moving in, or people greeting their classmates back after the vacations. Either way, he didn’t recognize any familiar faces, not that he was expecting to after all, being from a fairly isolated house. Later would be time so socialize and make friends or associates , he was content with minding his own business for the time being.

Once he had received the key to his assigned room, the one labeled 212, and being directed to the apartment block to the North, he proceeded to simply head there as a voice erupted over the loudspeakers. From the Dean’s announcement, the only thing that really caught his attention was the mention of the magical combat club. He wasn’t really sure how that sort of stuff was actually carried out, or what the tryouts entailed, but was certainly intrigued. Viktor certainly didn’t care for it as a sport, but if he managed to get in the team, he would have the ticket for a great opportunity to an amateur hunter such as him, one that he didn’t have back home. He would have the chance to brush himself against a wide variety of talented opponents and schools of magic. If he was to really make the most of this experience, this would be one good way to do so.

Entering his assigned room, he simply dropped the duffel bag he was carrying atop the bed. The room was quite simple and functional, eventually he would attempt to make the place somewhat more homely, but for now he just unpacked what few things he had brought over, some clothes and personal items. He had the whole day ahead of him, and he pondered for a second what to do. He didn’t of anyone familiar attending, so he was pretty much on his own, and simply walking around like most other First Years sounded like a veritable waste of time. Finally deciding on going for a run around campus and later checking the gym, Viktor exited the apartment. On the hallway just outside, he spotted a younger blond man leaving the adjacent room. Sensing it was a good time as any to meet his neighbor, he approached.

“Hi, I’m Viktor.” He announced himself with a thick Hungarian accent and his hand stretched out. “Looks like we will be neighbors. Are you a first year?”

[Theyra]

---

Olympia Galatas
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

Olympia hummed to herself as she walked, not really paying much attention to where she was actually going. It'd finally settled in that she was actually here and actually doing this, someone who'd taught herself everything she knew. Sure, she was probably going to be far from the most powerful mage among the freshmen, and she knew that, but that just meant she'd need to get creative with what she had.

Adversity bred strength and stuff like that.

Of course, waxing philosophically while walking was far from the best way to actually be paying attention to where one was going, and so as she turned the corner she all but slammed straight into someone. She stepped backwards, keeping her balance by pushing out a leg behind her.

"Nah, it's fine." Olympia said, hand moving in a dismissive gesture. "Wasn't paying attention, probably should've been. You new here then?"

"Same, I guess we both weren't paying attention and yeah I am new here". Tavian took a step back to give them spare. "I am Tavian Arcos and nice to meet you and I am a foreign exchange school from Romania. He casually put his hands behind his head and smiled. "Not my first time in America though and I heard good things about the Santa Marina Hunter Academy so I thought to see it for myself". This girl is kinda cute he and she reminds him of someone but, he can't place his finger on it. Maybe I should... no no, not now, I just meet her and I do not even know what her name is. "So what is your name and I feel like I should mention that I am a second year, took my first year back in Europe and so far this Hunter Academy seems nicer then my old one. Though that may be since I am little biased towards America, I had some good memories here". Tavian took a second to think and made a face. "Well not here in Florida but elsewhere up north".

[Durmatagno]

Victoria Aurelius Fawn
September 21st

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Victoria sighed as she got off, she'd sent a few PMs to try and smooth things over, but she was now in a worse mood than when she'd logged on. Finished the last bight of her sandwich, and made sure she was offline and not just idle. Standing up, she grabbed her phone, and her keys, she might go out after she was done hanging with Freya. She was now wearing much more casual clothes, jeans, shirt, and so on. She didn't care for blending into the crowds of rich kids, so she wore whatever she wanted. Leaving her dorm, she made sure it was locked, before checking the room she was looking for. North building, alright, not to bad. She took a more casual path, her thoughts lingering on her mistakes for the day. She sighed, and pushed them out of her head as she moved into the building, heading to the room she had been told to head to. Knocking on the door, she waited with her phone out, responding to a quick text from her half sister, and checking the news. She wasn't used to having this kind of idle time, she usually just kept herself busy even when she didn't have to.

[Lunas Legion]

Olympia Galatas
Santa Marina, September 21st, 2020

"Olympia Galatas. American, but I'm from LA. First time on the east coast or out of state for that matter." Olympia shrugged. "First time here too, obviously, and first year. Hell of a lot nicer than what I'm used to." Granted, most places would be nicer than what she was used to, but still, an improvement was an improvement and one couldn't bother worrying about things like magnitude or whatever. You took whatever you could get and didn't complain.

"It's an absolute shithole. Back in LA, that is." Olympia said bluntly, all but spitting out the words, venom in her voice. "No, I don't want to talk about it." She didn't like talking about home, although she refused to call it home. It wasn't home, not for her, not anymore. She'd left, and she was on to doing bigger and greater things than running around with some unofficial untrained Hunters doing whatever the fuck they wanted, as fun as it had been. A bad place with some good people in was a good enough description for it. "Why'd you come all the way over here for the second year anyways? Just seems like you could do everything here back in Europe."

[Recuecn]

“Hi, I’m Viktor.” He announced himself with a thick Hungarian accent and his hand stretched out. “Looks like we will be neighbors. Are you a first year?”

Tristan Glesbrecht
Santa Marina Hunters' Academy, September 21

---

"Hey Victor, nice to meet you." Tristan shook the hand he was offered. "I'm Tristan. Yeah, it is my first year. I just got here. You too?"

Tristan noticed the accent. "I've never been to the U.S. before, so it's nice to hear by your accent that hopefully I'm not the only one not from around here. I was a little worried I'd be the only one who didn't know my way around, and totally surrounded by Americans."

Tristan glanced at the door Viktor had just come out of: 212, right next to 213. As Viktor had said, it seemed they were neighbors.

"It looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other this year. Thanks for introducing yourself!"

But as Viktor turned to walk away, Tristan called after him.

"Wait!" He jogged over to catch up. "I'm done unpacking and don't really know what to do with myself. Where are you headed? Mind if I tag along?"