Welcome to Gaia! ::

Natalia had to work very hard not to roll her eyes when she entered the room to the sound of a girl in hysterics. She wasn’t one to be so easily annoyed, usually, but she was on edge with all these new students and her latest discussion with the official who’d come to look over their paperwork—too many kids, he said. As though he knew the slightest thing about any of it. As though he had the faintest hint of what it was like, trying to save these children from themselves.

Should have left this one to Philip.

Phil would have known how to handle the girl. He liked children, God alone knew why. He would be able to calm and soothe and do all the other hundred things with a grieving child that Natalia simply wasn’t built to do. But no, she was the administrator and she’d insisted that it was her job to handle this sort of thing. Of course, she hadn’t expected the girl to be quite this hysterical.

Enough. She had said she would handle it. So she would.

She settled herself before continuing. As she walked around the curtain, dipping a nod to the relieved nurse before coming to sit by Alexia’s bed, all Alexia would see was a beautiful woman who exuded cool composure. Natalia prided herself on that complete control.

“Miss Cipriano,” she said, her voice as calm as her face, “welcome to Brookrose. My name is Natalia Devries, and I’m the vice-principal here. It’s very nice to meet you.” Shifting her weight to seat herself more comfortably, clear grey eyes never leaving Alexia’s, she continued, “I understand you probably have a lot of questions. I’m here to answer them to the best of my ability.”

As she spoke, she dove inside herself, finding the core of her power and spreading it over the room. If the girl did know how to control her powers, and even if she didn’t considering her current state, Natalia would not have her wreaking destruction here. This place, like all of Brookrose, was hers, and nothing damaged what was hers.

~

Elsa tucked her long hair behind her ear as she frowned into her room. It was tidy, in a way that suggested the beginning of the semester—in another few weeks, once schoolwork began to get heavy and mentoring sessions began taking up her time, the room would start to resemble a thrift store’s back room. She was so focused on her studies that she rarely gave any thought to neatness.

But now she was bored, and classes didn’t start until tomorrow, and in the meantime she didn’t even have cleaning to do.

Resigned to her fate, she left the room again, closing and locking the door behind her without consciously thinking about it—after long enough living in a dorm, it came naturally. Tucking her key into her pocket, she wandered down the hallway, pausing briefly to read the cheery sign tacked to the hallway bulletin board. That was Victoria, always trying to make everyone feel welcome. Elsa often wondered how anyone could stay so cheerful all the time, especially in a school like…this.

Pushing her hands into her dress pockets and scowling at the floor, she moved on, heading to the staircase that led to the main landing. She wasn’t sure where she was going. Maybe she would wander to the school’s main building; that ought to take up some time if nothing else.

Breezing towards the stairs, she passed June with a polite, absent nod. She didn’t know most of the other students well, preferring to keep to herself, but she liked June well enough.

The fleeting glimpse of the forest made a small pinch at Bambi's heart, the sway of the leaves threatened by autumn's breezes tempting her. She was scared to go to the forest, scared of the potential craving she would develop to use her powers. While she was curious in seeing all the wondrous things she could do with this oddity of a power, she feared this desire deep inside her. So much so, she refused to go to the woods anymore.
Bambi gave a listless sigh, her figure by the window was a little haunting, the natural light of the crisp sun created a shine to her hair and a twinkle to her eyes. She loved the sun, loving the feeling of warmth and light absorbing into her skin. She lowered her eyes, her gaze lingering on the woods. She could stare at those trees for hours, seemingly torturing herself. Bambi began to daydream, leaning her head on the glass as she crossed her arms.

It wasn't until a movement towards the forest caught her attention, the figure scurrying away. He didn't seem to want to be conspicuous, but his sneaking around sort of brought some attention to himself, or at least, to Bambi. She had seen Kayle do this 26 times over all. She never asked him what he was doing, nor even mentioned that she had seen him, but presumed he was doing something with his power. Bambi knew he was a stubborn one with pyromancy under his belt. Bambi watched a little longer, waiting for him to disappear, before walking back down the hall, having temporarily been distracted.

She was headed back to the room, after being called into the office for general paperwork and confirmation. Because Bambi's father visited or contacted her so rarely, she was often put in charge of her paperwork. She didn't mind, he was never much of a father to her anyways. He wasn't a bad man, but Bambi couldn't blame him from feeling so ostracized by his only daughter. For holidays and breaks, she rarely went home. The last time she did was two years ago, and even then, she only visited for a couple days before returning to Brookrose.

Bambi headed back to the dorms, feeling a bit tired. She yawned, her face wrinkling as she covered her mouth, turning a corner to go up the stairs. Her room was on the higher levels, to which Bambi never minded. She heard crying and rushed tones, which she presumed belonged to newcomers. "They'll get used to it," she thought, before bounding up the stairs. She had been at Brookrose for eleven years, and had a few more to go until graduation. This was a reality she had accepted for a long time, so getting used to everything was not difficult for her.

Her room looked just like any other room on the outside. She entered, closing it behind her. Eleven years' of living in this place had turned her room into a cozy nook. Her blankets were a grayish periwinkle with small, faded white flowers on it. Her rug was a shaggy gray thing, to which Bambi immediately took her shoes off and stepped on as soon as she closed her door. She stood there, feeling the fluffy rug underneath her feet. It was not as good as grass, but it still felt good. She had few personal belongings; a picture of her mother, a lamp, a helping handful of books, and various other things. Her basic computer looked like it hadn't been turned on in a couple of weeks. Bambi didn't care to use it too much other than for school.

She hopped on the bed, taking a relieved breath as she laid there. She wouldn't get up unless someone bothered her or when dinner came around. The former usually didn't happen, but it wasn't because she wasn't popular around school. It was more like a lot of people didn't care to approach her. The latter would come later, despite Bambi's hunger now.

ⓑ ⓘ ⓡ ⓓ ⓢXXXⓞ ⓕXXXⓐXXXⓕ ⓔ ⓐ ⓣ ⓗ ⓔ ⓡ

τ ι м в ε я

There was a bird perched near the window that had attracted Timber's attention. It was a honey color, with a creamy chest flecked with dark brown freckles. A small bird, it grew tired of flying, and took a small rest. These birds tended to migrate during the end of the summer until fall. Unfortunately, 60% of them tended to die before they reached their destination. Most likely, this one wouldn't live to meet the warm southern regions.
Timber lowered his eyes, watching as the bird looked about its surrounding with wonder and caution. He leaned closer to the window, which seemed to catch the small bird's attention, which fluttered its wings, darted its head this way and that. Timber breathed, watching as the bird was startled and flew off to the skies.

He turned his head away, his face a little dull. The nurse told him he was still growing, maybe an inch or so within the next year. Timber dislike the news, hating his height. It brought too much attention to himself, and every inch stacked on him was like an extra inch of him being stared at. The nurse's office was always a solemn trip. He came back from his appointment, mainly because he had been feeling sick a couple days earlier. He sniffled from time to time, his nose a little red.

Timber pocketed his hands into his jeans, heading nowhere in particular. He supposed that going outside would be best. After all, there was a soccer ball in his backpack. He received it last Christmas. He didn't really like soccer, but he wasn't surprised his parent's got him it. They didn't really know their son very well. In the end, the ball had grown onto him.
Timber sighed, running a hand through his hair and turned a corner.

The familiar crimson caught his attention. If it weren't for their appearance, than it was how loud they were. Timber spotted Azariah riding Antoine's back, not particularly surprised about the exuberance they emitted. Timber waved a little, almost half heartedly. "What're you guys up to?" He asked, when they got close enough. They were in the school building, so he became curious as to why they were there when school started tomorrow. He tilted his head, his hair falling slightly in his eyes.

The large grey eyes focused on hers looked concerned, as though Natalia were honestly questioning Alexia’s sanity. Frowning ever so slightly, she asked, “Can you really not remember at all? She’d said she told you.” As she ran a hand through her hair, she sighed. “We’ll have to try to find a way to reach your mother. She never mentioned anything about…episodes like this.”

At the mention of police, Natalia’s eyebrow rose. Picking up one of the yellow sheets of paper, she wrote something on it quickly. If Alexia could lean around enough to see it—or if she had the ability to read backwards—she might be able to read, in tidy, legible handwriting, Paranoia? Instability? Possible delusional disorder? Need to find a way to reach the mother.

Though Natalia wouldn’t make it easy for her to read it, the notes were more for Alexia’s benefit than her own. After all, the only thing that mattered now was her duty to this child, just like all the others, problematic or not. “I don’t know what you might have done to concern police in your younger years,” she said, her voice dry but kind, “as I haven’t had the chance to learn much about you yet. You’ve only been here for a day. All I can tell you is that there weren’t any when you arrived.”

Studying her thoughtfully, Natalia shook her head at last. “Don’t worry,” she said, “I’m sure it will come back to you soon. In the meantime, we ought to get you settled as best we can, under the circumstances.”

Folding up the note, she slid it tidily into the pocket of her jacket. Looking patiently back at Alexia once that minor task was completed, she said, “I’ll have Victoria help you through these next few days until you begin to remember again. Unless you have anything else to ask?”

~

Phil scribbled a few more lines in his class plans for the next day and then sat back, frowning down at the lifeless sheet in front of him.

Deciding that it was the best he was going to manage until he had a feel for any new students and could begin something new, he left the drama room’s staging area, closing the door securely behind him. A few of his older students had keys, but he didn’t particularly worry about anyone getting in there—there was nothing of interest in the staging room, only costumes and a few old props. His arts students were passionate, and he usually managed to get them to try putting on productions every couple of years for the other students. They deserved some sort of fun, after all.

As he moved through the rooms towards the outside hall, he frowned thoughtfully at the sound of laughter and chatter ringing through the hallways. It wasn’t an unusual sound, even during vacation days, as most of the kids didn’t go home on breaks. But that still didn’t explain why it was coming from inside the school itself.

Rounding the corner, he paused and a dry smile curved the corners of his mouth. Ah. His over-enthusiastic makeup artist and her friend, and the tall, shy Timber. Well, that explained everything—Azariah went nowhere without fanfare. With a slight shake of his head at his own silliness, he turned away. There was nothing in the school proper that needed to be worried about—well, perhaps in Natalia’s office, but if he knew her (and he did), that was all well locked up, if it was even there and not in Natalia’s personal possession at all times.

She was careful; they all were. But this lot were no worry.

Jake sighed as he lay on his bed. He hated having to be here. The place seemed like a prison to him. They lured him in saying they'd help him better control his powers, but they left out the part where they discourage him from using his "evil" powers. It was a load of molarky and they all knew it. It was a genuinly good thing, something he could use to help others.

After dwelling on the many reason he hated this place he decided he didn't enjoy laying in bed doing nothing anymore. Maybe a nice little walk will inspire him to do something fun and destructive. Maybe he'd even get a chance to escape! He sat up in his bed and tossed his legs around so that they were resting on the floor. He grabbed his boots and put them on and strolled out of his dorm and down the hallway. If he was lucky he'd manage to ambush somebody with keys to the front gate.

Kayle didn’t look down when Mr. Jensen gave him a sidelong, suspicious look. He was a very good liar, and besides, he hadn’t technically lied about anything—he had been wandering, after he finished cleaning himself. “I stayed close,” he said, trying not to sound petulant or annoyed; he was sixteen years old, no kid anymore, and he couldn’t believe that Mr. Jensen still thought he might get lost in the woods. He knew his way around.

It never crossed his mind that perhaps his teacher knew more about teenage bravado than Kayle gave him credit for.

When Nils turned away and began walking back towards the school, Kayle lengthened his stride to keep up. Arguing with teachers over something that small never tended to end well, and Kayle was at least smart enough to save his arguments for things that mattered. He supposed he could reorganize his schoolbooks for the dozenth time that day. It wasn’t as though there was much else for him to do—classes hadn’t started yet, so no schoolwork; he was definitely not bored enough to clean his room; the school didn’t get Internet aside from approved research sites, and he wasn’t quite so desperate that he’d spend time searching through those for fun.

Once he was walking alongside his teacher again, and not noticing what an odd pair the neatly dressed teacher and rather slouchy student made, he remarked, “I asked Miss Devries about taking senior Chemistry. She said I’d have to ask you.”

The implicit question might have seemed odd to anyone from outside the school, but it would make perfect sense to anyone who had been there a few years. Miss Devries was not only the vice-principal. In essence, she was the entire administration; she was the one who gave final approval to students’ schedules, among other things. Most students could take most classes without difficulty, but sometimes, a certain student might have to talk to a mentor before they could take one—and Kayle, with his propensity for fire, would certainly have to get his mentor’s approval before Miss Devries would allow him around gas taps and chemicals.

Kayle hoped Mr. Jensen would approve it. He’d been getting better and better at controlling any flame bursts (he hadn’t had any in ages, except for that one big fight with Elsa, but that had completely been her fault), and he really liked science.

~

Natalia smiled slightly when Alexia shook her head. “Very well,” she said, rising gracefully from her seat. “I will ensure that your schedule gets to you before classes tomorrow. In the meantime, please don’t worry. We’ll sort all this out.”

Had Alexia known Natalia, she might have been relieved by such a statement; Natalia lived for order, and at the moment, Alexia’s problem was that everything was murky. Natalia would want to clear that up as much for her own sake as for Alexia’s. As she got up and left, she was already mulling over what she was going to do about this particular new student.

Alexia would go to Philip, of course. He was good at dealing with this sort of thing, and he would know not to pressure her into knowledge of her powers before she was ready. Nils already had so many students that she couldn’t imagine he would want one as problematic as this. Besides, the girl didn’t fall under his specialty.

Still thinking as she crossed from the nurse’s office around towards the building that housed the teachers—she had a few files she should get from her room before going to her office—she noticed one of the boys out alone. Her large eyes stayed on him for a few seconds, a vaguely troubled look crossing her face, there and gone like a shadow over a lake.

That Williams boy. He was more trouble than he was worth, and in her personal opinion, he was a danger not only to the faculty, but to the other students. She didn’t allow her opinion to influence her dealings with him, but sometimes she regretted that she’d been talked into keeping him at the school. There were other places they could send him, after all.

Turning away, she moved on towards her original destination. He could wander today, as many of the students did during break—the forest and grounds were extremely difficult to leave, and if he tried, she would know.

~

Phil’s sombre face shifted to neutral at Azariah’s cheerful greeting—which she would likely know was closer to a smile than most people usually got—and he nodded to her before continuing on his way. The students were free to roam, after all, and getting themselves settled into their routines before the upcoming year was a good idea.

One, incidentally, that he might decide to borrow.

Walking through the hallways, he took turns and side routes and shortcuts with practiced ease. He’d been at the school since he was twelve, after all—he knew his way around it like he knew his own hands. After a short while, he emerged into the early September sun through the back door of the school.

For a moment, he just stood there, with his head tilted up towards the sky. It was an unseasonably warm day for September, and he had the time; he might as well enjoy it.

Upon opening his eyes, his gaze fell on the row of innocuous little sheds behind the school, and his previously good mood went sour. Turning away from them a little faster than was strictly natural, he walked away, heading towards the dorm buildings. He wasn’t entirely sure what he was going to do with himself for the rest of the afternoon, but he’d figure out something.

As he approached the side of the school, he turned his head and noticed a small, pale shape sitting beside one of the sheds, her head in her hands. He frowned thoughtfully. Though he wasn’t her mentor, he knew Elsa from her music class. After a second of indecision, he went across to her. “Elsa?” he asked. “Is something the matter?”

She looked up at him after a second, giving him the weakest approximation of a smile he’d seen in a long time. “Not really,” she said. “I just…wanted to be out. Read a letter. Do some thinking. It was kinda loud in the dorm.”

Phil had been here long enough to know a barefaced lie when he heard one. All the same, he accepted the underlying message: no, I’m not okay, but it’s private. “All right,” he said, offering her a hand. “Are you ready to come inside yet?”

Elsa took the offered hand and got to her feet. “Yeah, I think so. I’ve got to look at my schedule again anyway.”

They headed back towards the dormitories in calm, companionable silence.