BranchWood Academy - Rebirth

James only received the letter inviting him to take the entrance exam because of who his father had been. He was sure of it. After all, his particular branch of Runics had been kept a family secret for so long that most people didnt even know it existed anymore. He suspected that some teacher or another had probably insisted on his introduction to the academy. A suspicion that had not been assayed when he received the results of his examination. He was positive that he hadnt done as well as it claimed, and to be honest, it made him nervous. But then again, his nerves were stretched far thinner than they should have been to begin with.
When he had opened the letter inviting him to take the exam at Branchwood, he had been sitting in a warehouse backroom that smelled of dead fish and mold. not exactly the most auspicious of apartments, but then again, being on the run for as long as he had been, and it was practically a godsend. He had no mailing address, no post office box. and yet there it had shown up. as if waiting for hi-

He opened the door to the dormitory room assigned on the map he had received upon entry to the building. On it was a note that bore his last name, as well as the surnames of two others. Fairchild, and Kanaki.
So it seemed that he had already been assigned roommates...
"Well it is a school doof." his brain said back to him.

he shook his head to clear the funk of his train of thought, and grasped the handle. Whatever else might happen today, he just hoped his roommates werent some Conan the barbarian types...

Was already in the room, sitting in one of the comfy chairs provided in the dorm. She was sorting through her bags and organizing all that she felt was necessary to have brought with her. Beside her, sitting on the arm, was her trusted companion, watching as her caretaker rumaged through things. The arctic vixen, while seeming to be no larger than a kit, had been with Ilu for nearly her entire life. Not that anyone could tell the angel's age by looking at her. Then again, from what she could tell, she was the only furre within the academy.

Continuing to look through her belongings, she began setting things onto the nearest table in front of her. Among the items were typical necessities, like hygiene products of her liking like scented soap vials and a few dresses similar to the one she wore..but it appeared now that she was searching for something "Ugh, where is it?.." she groaned to herself, lifting her head then to look to her endearing companion with a fake scowl " I don't suppose you know where it is?" she halfway accused her of taking it. The small vixen made direct eye contact with her owner, letting out a soft yip in response, flickering her tail in slight irritation. She could read the underlying accusation..Chuckling at her, the femme's shimmering gaze shifted under her veil back to her bag. It was that very second that she spotted it, staring right back at her. "Aha! There you are." she exclaimed, reaching in to pull out a hairbrush and set it on the table with the rest of her things.

It was after she had finished going through it all, that her ears perked up high at the subtle sound of the rattled door handle. Her eyes soon followed suit, glancing up to the door. Was someone coming in? "Come in." she called out, seeing if anyone was there. No doubt, it had to be one of her dorm-mates. She was curious to see who, or better yet, what they were.

Eleanor didn't like her current situation at all. Other than the fact that she'd been pestered to attend and academy of all things, she was completely and utterly conflicted. The brunette awkwardly stood in the middle of the main floor of the dormitories, her fingers tracing over the series of bumps that had been embedded into the paper she was holding - braille, which she silently thanked the school for - as she decided whether she should request for her own room or meet her room mates. Her face was scrunched up in a look of utter annoyance - not that anyone could see with the gas mask she wore - as she 're-read' the information displayed on the piece of paper. With a quiet sigh she tugged on Charlie's leash and, as if perfectly in tune with her thoughts, began trotting down up a flight of stairs to lead her to her designated location.

The two of them walked in unison very quietly down the hallways, the only sound coming from them being Eleanor's breathing through the mask and she quietly rolling sound of her luggages' wheels, until Charlie abruptly stopped, causing his owner to stumble. "What's wrong this time? Are we there yet?" She muttered in a muffled voice, sensing movement as the dog sat down with his tail wagging impatiently in the air, blatantly sniffing the pant leg of the boy - James, evidently - in front of the door he had meant to lead his owner to. It took her a few moments to realize what was wrong, before an annoyed sigh left the mouthpiece of the gas mask. She cleared her throat, steeling her nerves and hoping that whoever was in front of the door was nice enough.

"Whoever's blocking the way please move, as I need to get in there." Her voice was monotone, perfectly cordial and polite as she asked the person. It didn't make her feel better when she heard the 'come in' from the other side of the door, and she was tempted to run off for a moment. Oh great, people, she thought wryly.

James was a bit confused and a lot more bewildered. Inside the dorm was a furred humanoid figure that he would have assumed to be one of his roommates, had it not been for the fact that it was clearly female. And behind him was a completely human girl in a gas mask who had a retriever of some sort tagging along with her. Awkwardly he stepped back away from the door and looked again at the sign on it.
"Sorry!" he said, holding the door wide for the girl and her canine. "I think there's been a mistake of some kind. I'm supposed to be in #7, but um mm..." He paused as the girl went through the door. "Well, I think there's a pretty obvious reason I shouldn't be in here." He finished, blushing and turning away to leave.

"They never said anything about room mates being all the same gender," was all the brunette said in reply as she allowed herself to get towed into the room by an eager golden retriever, luggage and all loudly clunking behind. She dumped her suitcase onto the bed in the farthest corner of the room, a comfortable distance from the other two she assumed were probably her room mates. She didn't understand the boy's problem with the rooming situation - room mates were just room mates, you share rooms with them and the occasional class, that's all.

Eleanor sat herself down on the springy mattress of her new bed, testing it out by hopping up a few times. Deeming it to be decent enough, she let out a low whistle that caused her dog to immediately jump onto the bed beside her, circling a few times before settling down. Slowly tugging her gas mask down so that it hung from her neck, she took a deep breath of fresh air before speaking. "Eleanor Fairchild, no nickname preferences," she said flatly, in her own form of self introduction.

Kept her eyes on the door as it was opened, instead catching sight of two persons..Well then, efficiency at it's finest. Everyone was here and introduction could begin. Ilu naturally stopped everything she was doing, at least for the time being as her intentions quickly shifted towards the two. With a smile tugging at the corners of her muzzle, the beams of her eyes behind her veil shifted to the boy still standing aside "It'd be impractical to separate men from women, especially in a place like this. We're here to work with one another, living together in one space shouldn't be a problem." she paused, glancing over to the other femme who had already claimed her space and made her short introduction. Oh yeah, she was so quick to jump into the former topic that she didn't even do the very thing she hoped to do right from the start! Standing from her chair, the vixen lowered her upper body in a short bow in the general direction between the two "I am Iluza Kanaki. Everyone typically calls me Ilu." she announced, straightening her posture once she was finished speaking..

Looking back to the chair, her eyes traced back to Rika who's attention was mainly fixed on the larger canine that just walked in along-side the woman. What in blue blazes was that thing!? "This here is Rika. My companion..She wont cause any trouble. Right?" she said calmly, introducing the small vixen that had her attention still fixed on the thing across the room, thrashing her tail nervously from side to side. Seeing how attentive she was to the woman's dog, Ilu reached out her hand to snap in front of the kit's face. "Riight?" she questioned again, the initial snap of her fingers gaining the small creature's attention. Soon after, Rika would nod some in understanding. Theeen beam her eyes right back to the retriever.

Letting forth a soft sigh, the vixen's hidden gaze flashed back, mostly to the young fellow as he still stood outside "Come on in, make yourself comfortable. I've already claimed the center bed." she pointed out, canting her head in it's general direction "Which leaves the one near the opposite wall I guess.." she added, blinking her eyes awkwardly at the remaining space. Huh, guess they didn't leave him with much choice. Great way to make him feel welcome right from the get go..

Still tentative, James entered the dormitory itself. His ears glowing pinkish as he did so. He wasnt exactly familiar with girls in general, considering his background; so find himself suddenly roomed with two was a rather odd situation for him to experience. He moved to the only remaining bed in the room, nearest the door he had just entered. He set the messenger bag he bore on the desk beside it and sat on the edge of the wooden chair it was paired with.
"Uh, James. Carmichael." he replied.
He looked out the entry he had just come from. A boy who appeared to be a year or two ahead of them was speaking to another and he realized that they were looking at him and at the girl on the bed beyond him. He stiffened as the first boy appeared to give him a thumbs up while his friend grinned wolfishly. The pair then left, but James somehow got the feeling that it wasnt the last he would see of them...
"Look." He said apprehensively. "I'm not sure who was the one who decided that we were going to be in the same room and all, but I really don't want to get in anyone's way, so I'll just go and see if I can find someone who can figure out this whole room thing."
James stood once more, more definitively than before. of course this had to be an error! No one in their right mind would move him into-
He turned and saw a woman in a matron's uniform standing in the doorway, blocking the light with her massive form. height more than girth,and although she smiled, clearly intimidating.
"Oh good!" she said loudly, "You've all found your way to the room! I'm the floor matron, but don't worry! I wont get in your way and chances are you'll never see me again, what with me being a construct of the school and all!"
James opened his mouth to speak about the living arrangements, but somehow, the woman was gone. Having disappeared so fast that the light suddenly coming through the unblocked door blinded him for a moment. magical construct? A fake matron? what was that all about?

Slowly lowered herself back into her chair, silently watching the boy as he surveyed the other dormitory patrons in the hall. Catching the actions of the other men, Ilu couldn't help but shake her head "Apparently they see you as fortunate..If only they knew." she spoke softly, not really elaborating on what she meant by the last bit. Though she was quick to shed the focus away from that matter, turning her attention back to him "You needn't be so nervous. Just take the time to settle and you'll get use to it. No one's going to traipse the room in the nude." she tried to assure him, getting the partial reason why he'd be so unsettled.

Turning her attention back to her belongings, she had taken into account that she indeed had everything that she left home with. Satisfied with that, she'd begin putting it all back into her bag neat and organized so she could easily find what she needed later. At this moment, the day was fading and the rain didn't seem to be letting up any. While Rika seemed all too occupied staring down the canine across the room, Ilu was growing hungry..Taking a moment to think, she rested back into her seat with her wings folding tight against her shoulders. Soon, the shimmer of her eyes through the cloth flashed between the two up until the large woman made herself present just outside the doorway. The angel's ears stood tall, subtly swiveling while the matron expressed her delight in knowing they all found their way to the right room. Hmm, she seemed nice?...Looking back to them both after the sudden break in their meeting, the vixen couldn't help but ask "Do any of you happen to know when..or where food is served?" she asked, seeming to have diverted away from meeting people and more towards food. Obviously, her attention span had a tendency to be short every now and then.

Eleanor couldn't help but shift uneasily in her seat, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the mass of unfamiliar voices and noise that came from the door and within the room. At first she opened her mouth to reply to the other girl - Iluza, she mentally noted in her head - so she could introduce her own pet companion at some sort of attempt of making small talk, but then she heard the boy introduce herself. And then when he finished speaking and she tried again, she chickened out last second and hid the bottom portion of her face behind her mask, eyes staring blankly at the wall on the other side of the room as she quietly listened to everyone else.

She didn't mind waiting her turn to speak, after all it said in all the etiquette books she'd read on the way to the academy that butting into conversations was rude. Her ears pricked up when she heard the floor matron, having been intending to ask a few personal questions before- it suddenly went silent. The presence of the matron had gone and left like a passing breeze of wind, here one moment then gone the other. Eleanor shook it off, putting it at the back of her mind to research later in the future. "Meals are served 6:30-8 in the morning, 11:30-12:30 in the after noon and 5-6 in the evening. I have a map of the school in my bag if you need it," the brunette suddenly piped up, seemingly reciting the meal times from memory as she turned in the general direction of where she'd heard Iluza's voice. "I don't know the time, but does that suffice, Miss Iluza?" Not one to forget the other in the room, she quickly added, "I memorized a some of the floor plans for the academy beforehand. Well, just the places I knew for sure I'd be going. So if you two need directions, feel free to ask."

"Thanks for that." James said gratefully. He himself didnt have a map of the school, and up to that point had assumed that there were none and that he would have to learn the layout simply by exploring the old fashioned way.
Now resigned to the fact that his assignment to this particular dorm was not something to keep questioning or bring up further remark on; James started to unpack. first from the messenger bag he pulled a small metallic bowl that had several angular symbols engraved on its side, celtic in nature. he placed the bowl on the desk next to his bed with a small clink of iron on wood, and then reached into the bag for a second object. This time removing a wire frame that he unfolded and placed the bowl in so that it sat about a foot above the desk's surface. and finally, a porcelain platter which he slid under the frame to rest directly under the bowl.
Once finished arranging the little curiosity, James knelt down to open his suitcase. From this second receptacle, he withdrew two thin metal rods. each with a simple wooden handle. the first was made of copper,and the second of iron. The last thing he pulled was a tightly bound canvas wrap which he left on the side of the desk. One end of the wrap lay exposed, revealing to anyone looking, a series of wooden spikes, wide and circular at the base and sharpened to harsh six inch points.
Having set up his tools in the usual manner, James closed the suitcase, and looked around the room for- Ah yes! a fully stocked fireplace was set close to the third bed and the window side of the room. He strode to it and opened the kindling hatch built into the side of the wall beside the fireplace, withdrawing a handful of woodchips and stepping back to the table where he placed the chips on the porcelain platter. Now the only thing left, was to provide a blaze.
"Don't suppose either one of you know anything about pyrotechnics?" he asked, patting his pockets and finding them matchless.

Ilu's attention trailed back to the other femme as she seemed fairly quick to answer her question. Perking her ears up high, she took mental note of all the times as they were announced. That certainly was good to know, though it looked like she was going to have to wake up early if she wished to get anything for breakfast. Not that it would be much problem as she didn't require much to function. There was always lunch. Moving along from the subject, her attention instead settled on the retriever resting on the bed beside the woman. The angel partially noted that she wasn't the only one curious about it, seeing as Rika has yet to take her eyes off of it. Only difference was that Ilu knew full well the reason why it led her around. While she was tempted to ask and learn more about her an her companion, the boy's strange activity beckoned her eyes. "What are you doing?" she questioned, chanting her head to the side some..."Unfortunately, I don't, but.." she paused, peering back over to the other femme, swaying her tail to her right side "...do you?" she passed the same question to her in partial hopes she'd have a way to assist him in, whatever he was doing!

Meanwhile, Rika had since hopped off the arm of the chair and to the floor to slowly make her way over to Eleanor's bed. Once at it's edge, she'd rise up to prop herself up onto her hindpaws, pushing against the side of the frame with her fores all in attempt to get a closer look at the larger canine. Her ears were flattened and reared back as she examined the new creature, leaning her head in to try and get a scent. She seemed more wary of it than anything else..

Eleanor's ears picked up the sound of shuffling around and movement, looking towards the direction of the noise. "...I don't have matches," she replied to after a few moments, realizing that the question - both of them - had been directed towards her. Her eyes fluttered shut as she nudged the dog on her bed, who growled at the intruder near the bed - Rika - before stretching and carefully slipping off the bed, ignoring the other canine as he padded over to sit in a spot where he could look at both of his owner's new room mates. His eyes had a strange gleam to them, a ring of black over the iris as he looked inquisitively around the room. "But would a Kobold's fire work for you?" Eleanor asked, clasping her hands together under her chin.

She tilted her head from side to side, strangely in sync with her dog's movements as she did so, cracking her neck as she relieved the stiffness with some stretching. "I'm not allowed to play with fire, see, but it's Charlie's defensive measure so it's convenient at times," she explained, nodding in the general direction she'd heard the dog walk off to.

"Yea a kobold would be great wouldnt-, wait. Your dog is a kobold?" James asked, thoroughly confused. " what is it a transfiguration? An illusion that makes it look like something else?"

While watching the dog, intending to watch this little show of sorts with interest, James replied to Iluza.
"Oh, yea. This stuff is how I do magic. See, my family was a sort of offshoot on druids. Big on kinetic energy, finding magic in the earth, ley lines." He pointed to the spikes bound together on the table. "Essentially what I do is burn keys into the spikes, that give me access to that energy."

Directing her eyes down to the dog as he approached, Ilu couldn't help but be curious. She looked him in the eyes, then knelt down out of her chair while slowly presenting the back of her right hand to him so he could gather her scent "Hello there, love." she said in a sweet, almost motherly tone..If he did come forward and happened to touch the back of her hand with his snout, he'd feel a sudden warmth shroud him. It wouldn't be intense, but it would be rather soothing. If he refused, she'd simply direct her attention back to what James was doing and stand to her footpaws..Regardless, she realized from the very moment she saw them both, she just had to be the oldest one here. Well, she would't be surprised if she was older than most of the students at BranchWood, but by comparison, they looked so young..

Meanwhile, Rika didn't seem to have backed away after being growled at by the larger canine. In fact, she'd taken to leaping up onto the bed as soon as he hopped off to try and say hello to Eleanor! Creeping her way forward with her tail hung low, she stretched her small body to inch her face as close as she could the woman's hands. All she wanted was a little scent, but she certainly wouldn't object to pets..granted if she wasn't punted away instead!

"Kobolds are known to manifest into different types of forms, as well as an affinity for the fire element. Charlie is a house spirit that gets passed down my family. So just tell him where to start a fire," Eleanor replied, lips turning down into a frown for some reason. Her hands twitched as she felt a presence near her, shoulders tensing visible, but reluctantly she placed her hands closer to where Rika was. She doubted there to be any danger in the room, anyway, so there was nothing to lose. Upon feeling fur tickling her fingers, she held her hand out for her to sniff, not wanting to scare her off.

Charlie stared up at Iluza for a moment, observing her closely. Instead of getting closer to sniff her hand, he did the opposite - he bowed his head low in his own form of greeting, before turning to James for directions. It seemed he had much more different mannerisms than a normal canine, perhaps due to his kobold nature. He tilted his head to the side questioningly, his attention on James.

Interested in seeing Elanor's companion in action, James pointed at the platter he had placed the kindling on a moment prior.
"Just here is all thanks. Nothing too big. No need for more than a starter."

Rika flinched at the sudden twitch of the femme's hands, in fear they would swing, but she didn't move much further than that. She quickly got the sense of welcome and as soon as the hand moved closer, she took a short moment to gather her scent. It was then that her demeanor changed from cautious, to lovey. Giving her hand a gentle lick, the vixen crept herself closer to Eleanor, placing her right paw on the outside of the girl's thigh. Pushing on that paw, she propped herself up enough to rub her head into the presented hand. Her tail began to wave frantically from side to side as she let out a cheerful yip. From there, she'd try to move further into Eleanor's lap. Yep, she certainly was quick to judge character.

Iluza's interest, having been drawn in by what James was up to, urged the angel to get closer to his little setup. Peering over his shoulder, her eyes fell to the contraption he had put together. Still, she had no idea what he was meaning to accomplish, but she had the strongest feeling she was about to find out if Charlie did offer his assistance. She just hoped the dorm wasn't going to be burned down! Oh their reputation would go downhill on day 1 for sure if that happened. With that in mind, Ilu felt the tiniest bit nervous, but outwardly appeared calm. Her tail still waved gracefully behind her and her ears still stood high, mostly keeping tabs on Rika as she befriended Eleanor..So far, she felt they would be getting along just fine.

Gently petting the head of soft fur she felt pressing against her hand, Eleanor took her chance to 'observe' the vixen, running her hands over her head and muzzle, around her neck and back. She couldn't help but raise her eyebrows in mild surprise, as she hadn't expect Rika to be so little - she was used to being around larger animals, much like Charlie and the like. "It's good to meet you," Eleanor muttered to her, voice devoid of emotion yet her actions seemed to be much more expressive than her words.

The sound of Charlie's growl seemed to divert her attention from Rika though as she paused her movements for a moment to look off in his direction. As if conveying some sort of message to his owner, Charlie barked twice and scratched his paw on the hardwood floor. Eleanor understood what he was doing though, letting out a sigh. She said something quietly, but there were no words at all - it only consisted of a series of melodic sounds and strange pronunciations. Charlie reacted to it though, for within a few moments his body melted into thin air, only a fiery silhouette of a dog left in his place. He suddenly took a running leap towards the platter James had pointed at, shrinking in size and circling it once, causing a fire - and in the blink of an eye was sitting back on the floor, licking his paws as if nothing happened.

With the fire started and the kobold back to its less incendiary form, James sat down at the desk itself, leaving enough room for anyone to see what he was doing while he explained the next part of his process.
"See, what we have here is a metal bowl. I let the bowl itself heat up over the next few minutes while I also place these" he picked up the two metal lengths. "Directly in the blaze below. Once they get hot enough, I use them to inscribe the wooden spikes with runes that both absorb and release energy. Then I place each spike one by one in the bowl with its base at the bottom of the bowl. The heat energy is absorbed from the bowl, and I have a basic source of magic from which to draw upon. It does take a while, but the use outweighs the process length."

Ilu's eyes shifted behind their cloth, still shining through the fabric as they beheld James' project. While she gathered the basic concept, she wasn't sure what kind of magic he was putting into the wooden spikes. Sure, she knew a lot about magic, but being able to appraise which kind was still something she'd yet to master for she has focused much time in mastering her own class and nothing more. So, it came as no surprise that she was so drawn to what he was doing. Canting her head to the side, she suddenly felt need to ask him "What kind of magic? Or is it simply for mana holding? Or whatever you call it. Everyone seems to call it something different." she rambled, unintentionally letting forth her more 'cute' and girlish tones when her mind wandered from the initial question. Her wings subtly splayed some, attempting to loosen the joints in her left. The angel listened rather intently to what he'd say.

Rika had taken to resting in Eleanor's lap, taking in the warmth of the femme's welcome and touch. Typical animal, taking refuge in the warmest places she could find. Despite her comfort, her eyes shot to Charlie as he underwent the quick transformation, casting fire and whatnot. Well then...she'd make a mental note of that. Probably best she didn't mess with Charlie, unless she wanted to be fluffy toast!