The House of Saul

It's still not yet two, but the kitchen doors are opened about fifteen minutes early. Inside, the Professor is already seated, a cup of tea in his hand as he tastes it quietly.

The dining table is set in mismatched tea sets - a cup with saucer set for a baker's dozen (six on either side, and the thirteenth at the end of the table - where the Professor is sitting) and lining the center of the table are four-tiered trays, this one with a selection of finger sandwiches, this one with chocolate-dipped fruits, this one with pastries and sweet breads, this one with scones of a couple varieties, and this one with fresh fruit. As you come in and take a seat, one of the kitchen staff fusses over you, but holds out a list to you, lips pursed. It has a long list of a variety of teas - black, green, red, white, and even a choice of iced tea (sweetened or not) if that suits your fancy better.

The Professor says nothing.

Shita slumped into the tea room and slid into her chair with all the personality of a wet mop. She had originally planned to get to class early, maybe meet a professor, and maybe even get started early on her studies. Only she couldn't get the door open. So instead she came here, into the cafeteria. The list caught her attention, distracting the girl momentarily from her negative thoughts.

"Sweet...tea?" She asked, looking up at the staff member holding the list. "Tea can be sweet?" She was astonished at even the most remote idea. "It's always tasted bitter to me.." She mumbled her herself, then to the staff member,"May I have that please? The sweet one?" The girl was curious about the drink, but when her eyes fell on the food she became more curious still. Tentatively she reached out towards some of the fruit. It was the most familiar item on the table to her, but paused just before her fingertips touched a blueberry and looked up at the professor. She had no idea who he was of course, having yet to come face to face with Saul, but he was an elder to her and if nothing else commanded some form of respect.

Shita withdrew her hand. "Excuse me sir, umm, it doesn't look like you've had any yet. Would you like some fruit?" She asked cautiously.

She was answered with the longest pause of silence she could ever remember getting from a proposed conversation. To be more specific, there was no response. The girl, beginning to feel uneasy, quickly gathered some fruit for herself and settled back down into her seat. For some reason, she felt embarrassed. The girl was confused, and when the tea arrived, softly brought the liquid to her lips. The taste was....abnormally fantastic. Her youthful eyes widened, and she took another sip. Then another. In the end she drained the cup before looking around to see if they would be bringing any more. Sweet tea was amazing! She looked up at the man before her to try and share her new discovery, and was cowed again. Was he mute? She didn't understand. Sighing softly Shita returned to her early meal, eating the fruit slowly.

The stewardess only pursed her lips, but retrieved the sweet tea. It came in a pitcher, full of ice, and was so sweet it was practically a syrup. It is served in a tall glass, and she gestures to the dressings - lemons, sprigs of mint, and more sugar cubes should one need it. And then scurries off.

The Professor did not answer. In fact, he kept his eyes on his own tea cup, as if in a pointed display. After he said nothing, and saw his student fend for herself, his eyes unfocused once more. He sipped the tea silently, as she devoured her tea and nibbled on fruit.

A little wary, this one, he thought to himself. Sticking to what she recognises, foodwise, but experimenting a bit in tea. She'll be stubborn, and one will need to develop her lessons gradually...

As he finished his cup, he checked his time piece once again - he watched the moments tick over, and then in the distance, the sound of bells rang out a tune. And then, two gongs - naming the hour. Smiling to himself, the Professor looked to the young student.

"Good day, Ms. Simuo," he greated, his dark, rich baritone as lighthearted as he could make it. He reached for the teapot, and poured himself another cup, adding a little sugar and milk before stirring it soundlessly in the china. He took another sip of the hot liquid, and sighed gently.

Meditation hour. Oh, this was going to be an interesting time.

Bugger bugger bugger...

I'm late, Marlowe thought to himself. No, technically, he wasn't late, he was on time. But the Professor would start his tea as much as ten or twenty minutes EARLY, and if the Professor was at tea, he wanted to be at tea. Even if it was still the Silent Hour, presentation was everything. He was determined not to screw this up.

He scurried into the main building, and then quieted his footsteps, making his way down the hall as quickly as he could without making undue noise, and then found the Dining Hall already open.

He stopped at the door. The tea was set for a full court, as usual, and all of the fixings were on the table (also as usual) but instead of just the Professor, there was someone else there. It was one of the new students - he recognised her, because he was the one that ferried messages about, including her welcome letter her first day at the House - but he hadn't had a chance to meet her yet.

Marlowe swallowed nervously, trying to give himself a chance to catch his breath from his mad dash at the other end of the Servants' Quarters, where he'd been trying to finish a few quiet chores for the Silent Hour. Marlowe bowed in respect to the pair of them, and then made his way to the other side of the table from the Professor.

"Sorry I'm late, Professor." I bowed again to the lady. "A pleasure to meet you, milady."

And then Marlowe sat himself, and set about making a plate - a pair of the egg salad sandwiches he favoured, and the pot of orange pekoe. Just a taste of sugar for the bite.

Tay had been mortified when the Professor startled her in the greenhouse, and anxious to prove that he had not chosen wrongly when he invited her to join his community, she had undertaken at once to rectify her shortcomings, and thus had taken herself hurriedly off to the library immediately before lunch. She had a copy of the Avani book he had recommended, of course, as well as a handful of his other works. (She couldn't read the Sanskrit originals, but hers were English translations.) However, she had managed to find the work by Master Cesare that Saul had recommended and borrowed it from the library, stowing it carefully in an otherwise empty cloth bag (she KNEW that if she had anything else in the bag, or tried carrying the book bare-handed, she would mess it up), then gone down to lunch. After a quick meal, she had gone up to her room a few minutes before the hour of silence officially started, hoping to get a head start on the Cesare book.

It was one of the most fascinating tomes she had ever read, and the meditative techniques were simple but effective, according to the descriptions. Sitting cross-legged on her bed, she had read the book carefully, following the lines with a pudgy finger, stopping every once in a while to try a breathing technique or to shift her position. So engrossed was she in the book that she didn't realize the hour of silence was up until she heard the two loud gongs, sounding the hour. She jumped, hastily marked her place with one of her myriad leather bookmarks, and hurried out of the Apprentices' Quarters towards the kitchen.

At least, she told herself as she slowed down at the doorway, she wasn't the last one there. Professor Saul sat erect at one end, a china cup in his hand. Next to him was a small, thin girl with red hair--Tay wasn't sure what to make of her--and the man who had acted as messenger on the first day, bringing her welcome letter and showing her where her room was and all that. Tay thought his name started with an M, but she couldn't remember exactly. Taking a deep breath, she walked into the room, a warm smile pasted on her face.

"Good afternoon, Professor," she said courteously, dropping a curtsy (well away from any chairs, tables, or plinths with vases on them, as she had learned from experience; otherwise, if something didn't get broken, she would end up with an interesting bruise). "I hope I'm not late...I was reading that book you recommended, the Cesare one. Thank you for the suggestion. I really think it's going to be a big help."

Carefully, she took a seat that distanced her slightly from the other people--hence no jogging of elbows or spilling of other people's tea--and studied the tea menu she had been given. A green witch, Tay was not a connoisseur of many things, but she knew tea inside and out and was a little particular about how she drank it. Her eyes lit up as she spotted the list of "red teas" and indicated that she wanted the Opus Rouge Rooibos tea. Upon receiving a cup (in a china cup--oh, Lord, she had best be careful), she took a plate and gingerly selected two things from each of the four-tiered platters. A pimento cheese finger sandwich and an egg and cress, a chocolate-dipped strawberry and a chocolate-dipped orange piece, a piece of melon and a small cluster of grapes, and a cinnamon scone and a blueberry scone. She probably shouldn't have taken so much, on mature reflection, but the hell with it, she hadn't eaten much at lunch, being in a hurry to read the Cesare book, and she was hungry.

Not so hungry, however, that she forgot what she had been taught. Lowering her eyes, she folded her hands on her lap and murmured a few words in Gaelic before she sipped at her tea. Wonderful, she thought, a smile playing on her lips. The only tea in the world I've never needed to add anything to. It's perfect.

He knows my name? Shita wondered curiously, then promptly dropped her most recent bite of fruit back onto the plate with a soft *thud* when Marlowe came rushing into the room.

"P-p-Professor?!" She shrieked as ice filled every blood vein in her body. Then and there, she almost broke down into tears. She had been in the room, with the head of this place, for that long and not known?! It was embarrassing! Marlowe looked vaughly familiar to her, but she wasn't focusing on him at the moment. She had just enough time to become further embarrassed by her outburst when a third student entered the room. Shita watched as she came into the room and sat a few chairs away, and once again the girl became distracted. When this girl, too, greeted Saul by "Professor" Shita found herself irritated. Had everyone here but herself known who Saul was?! But, at a glance at him, he didn't seem to be too offended with her at the moment so really what did it matter as long as she approached him correctly from now on? Now, back to the other girl. Shita didn't really run into other females often, at least outside of any villages she was lucky enough to stay the night in. This one seemed...different, somehow. Strange was a good word, and if she had known the term she would have said 'bookish'.

So, now that she had successfully made an ass of herself in front of the most important person here, there was no reason to stop acting in the way she knew best. Pushing her food away gently, Shita scuttled over chair by chair until she was sitting directly beside Taygeta and smiled.

"Hullo! Shita, Shita Simuo!" She greeted the other student merrily, holding out an expectant hand. People shook hands when they met now, instead of bowing. This she had learned. "Whats your name?" Her smile was bright, cheery, and maybe a little bit forcefull.

"P-P-Professor?!" the girl shrieked. Marlowe jumped, surprised at her vehemance. He blinked at her, wondering if she was perhaps mad.

And then the other student entered. She, too, greeted the Professor (and curtsied! Blast it all, he was going to have to step up his game!).

"I hope I'm not late...I was reading that book you recommended, the Cesare one. Thank you for the suggestion. I really think it's going to be a big help."

Marlowe bit back a curse. She'd already been given book recommendations?! Blast it all! She was a favourite, and they hadn't even had classes yet. When Marlowe had gotten to the House, he'd only had a couple days to explore the grounds (rather poorly, that is - without a map, he got lost rather quickly) before he'd been given 'something useful to do' - the occupations that the Professor had mentioned in his orientation. A map had been quickly supplied, and he'd thenceforth become the messenger of the place. Sending orientation letters to new arrivals, ferrying queries and tasklists around the grounds. The cook had taken a liking to him and had him helping her stock the pantries, so he was now perpetually busy. It was a nightmare. He looked forward to classes so that he could get SOME relief from his new duties... At least Magdin made sure he was learning something, not just putting him to work.

Marlowe kept himself from growling, but destroyed the sandwich in his mouth as he stewed.

He was distracted by the sound of moving chairs. The first girl scooted chair-to-chair until she was sitting next to the new one, and smiled winningly. "Hullo! Shita, Shita Simuo!" She greeted. "What's your name?"

Marlowe let himself smirk. This one... he probably would not have to worry about so much.

Oh, that's right, the Professor reminded himself. We haven't been formerly introduced.

He debated apologising, but decided not to. See how she dealt with surprises.

And then Marlowe showed up. Overly ambitious young man. His face was flushed, and his voice thin, but he did a good show of being presentable.

"Sorry I'm late, Professor," he said, bowing.

Late? Hardly. He was actually ridiculously punctual. But, yes. He'd noticed the boy liked to show up early for things. He had thought it was because he was bored and restless - and had thus quickly given him an occupation that would let him release all of that extra energy - but now, he pondered if perhaps he was trying to be impressive. ...It would fit in. Young journeyman as he was, signing up for this prestigious apprenticeship. Oh, his pretentiousness could be used for some rather challenging competition... Saul made a note of it.

He gave the boy a nod of acknowledgement. Marlowe took it, and then bowed as well to Ms. Simuo before taking his usual seat. Saul watched him pick out his usual - he'd experimented the first few days, and had decided on favourites. Saul was curious how long it would take him to grow bored of these things, and made a note to ask the cook to change the egg salad a taste in a week or so. ...Oh, he was so deliciously evil.

Ms. Simuo's shock, however, had worn off. A bit.

"P-p-professor?!" she shrieked.

Saul's eyebrows shot up. My, she had some lungs. And didn't take kindly to surprises. Saul regarded the young woman with interest. She was a puzzlement. It would be interesting to study her further...

...but just then Taygeta came in. She, too, looked a little flushed, but not dangerously so. There was a delightful twinkle in her eye, and a smile on her face.

"Good afternoon, professor," she greeted. With a curtsy. Ah, someone with some etiquette he remarked with delight. He could sense a bit of heat coming from the direction of the young journeyman - a quiet, simmering something that caught his eye, but the boy was wise to keep it to himself. The only evidence was his darkened visage and angry chewing.

Oh, these people are going to be so much fun... the Professor thought to himself.

But the witch wasn't done. "I hope I'm not late...I was reading that book you recommended, the Cesare one. Thank you for the suggestion. I really think it's going to be a big help."

Ah, someone who is quick to do their homework, he thought. The Gods be praised.

He gave her a warm smile. "I am glad you took the time to peruse the Library for it. You didn't have much trouble navigating the shelves?" He did not have a librarian to staff the place, so it was usually up to the students to find their own tomes. The fact that Argee liked to wander about when Guil needed something new to read made it a favourite testing space of his.

She seated herself away from them - something he took note of with some concern - and then murmured a quiet prayer.

She's religious. That could make things very interesting. A religious person tended to be a bit harder to break, but their faith also made them much stronger, and capable of things that a mere mortal wouldn't dare try on their own power. He would have to investigate and find out which faith she followed. That would be dreadfully useful in the future.

Shita, for her part, seemed rather peeved that everyone had been formally introduced, and in honesty, Saul kicked himself for not taking care of that detail. He knew her, yes, but she didn't know him. He blamed being incredibly busy the last couple days, that he hadn't had a chance to 'bother' her earlier.

To compensate, she moved, chair-by-chair - making a bit of noise in the process - toward the other witch, and stuck out a hand.

"Hullo! Shita, Shita Simuo!" She greeted. "What's your name?"

Saul sipped his tea, but chanced a glance at Marlowe, who seemed to be amused by this. Unfortunately, this was the first time he'd had students around - peers, if you like - for Marlowe to interact with. When it came to himself or the people of the House - all of whom outranked him and ordered him about, due to his occupation - he did his job quickly, and with a determination. But now, amongst peers, he had a dark sort of competition to him. Saul saw this as a warning. Competition was healthy, to a certain extent, but jealousy, envy and pride had a way of tainting you. It would make him powerful as a Dark Arts practitioner, and he did not consider that a good thing in any way.

Disquieted, he tried to focus once more on the two women on the side.

Tay was not, by nature, unobservant, but she did have rather specialized knowledge. She could tell in an instant whether or not a plant needed water or fertilizer, whether it was ready to bloom or needed more time, whether it was about to start showing signs of disease or about to die, when the fruits and nuts were at the absolute peak of freshness...but she couldn't read people. She couldn't tell a false smile from a true one, or a scowl of anger from one of concentration. Thus, she assumed that Shita was merely trying to follow the conversation and Marlowe was concentrating on his food.

"No, not at all," she assured the professor, in response to his question. She was about to add that the books had told her where the Cesare book was, but decided, on balance, no. Tay often talked to plants, and her mother used to laugh at her when she swore they talked back, but they did. She was very attuned to plants--flowers, crops, trees, even grass--and it had given her a shock the first time she had mumbled something at a book and it had responded in a dry, rustling whisper, but she supposed that was to be expected. Paper, after all, was only wood in a different form. Generally they didn't talk unless she did first--plants were polite--so she was glad that the Cesare book hadn't spoken to her while she was trying to read. Or maybe it, too, was bound by the hour of silence and meditation.

She ate the pimento cheese sandwich carefully, and then became aware of a scraping sound. Looking up, she saw the other girl move from chair to chair until she was sitting next to Tay, who carefully set her teacup at a decent distance and moved her plate a little further from the edge. No sense in tempting fate, not on her very first day.

"Hullo! Shita, Shita Simuo!" She greeted. "What's your name?"

Tay responded with one of her warmest smiles. She took the other girl's hand and shook it in a friendly way. "My name is Taygeta, but you can call me Tay," she replied. "It's nice to meet you, Shita." She glanced around at the young man. Where normal people saw a smirk, Tay saw only a smile and decided he was friendly enough, but she was a little shy and decided she would wait for him to speak before she said anything. To Shita, she added, "How long have you been here? I only arrived last night myself."

"Same here," Shita chirped happily, lad to have someone who would respond to her. "I wanted to get to classes early but," She blushed a bit, "The doors were locked so I came here instead." While speaking, Shita took a closer look at Tay. The girl had responded readily enough, this was a good sign. Then her thoughts lingered towards Marlow. What kind of person was he? Being male, she didn't much care about him, and thus also did not notice his smirk. Of course, throwing her attention and enthusiasm into greeting Tay might have had something to do with that.

Shita loved to work with her elements, and loved improving on them. She didn't, however, have a competitive bone in her body. If someone was stronger, better, or faster than she the girl really did not tend to care. What did it matter s'long as Shita herself was learning at an acceptable pace?

"Why are you here? Did you run into the tall guy too?" 'The tall guy' was a person she had run into about a week ago who had informed her of Saul's existence. This was a chance to increase her craft and, eventually, perhaps find her brother.