Bored and lonely

[Fell]

Neer wasn\'t really doing anything in particular; just hoping to meet someone new. He\'d finished everything he needed to for his classes and position, as well as a new book by Conte and three of Shakespeare\'s plays. And now, he was looking for something new. It simply wouldn\'t do, being bored.

The dragon often perused the student\'s quarters when he was looking for entertainment. None of the students below about 2nd level even knew who he was, let alone his position, and most of those above that level weren\'t aware either. Neer was just fine with it that way, as it meant he didn\'t get treated with all the ridiculous pomp that most known Masters did. It was such an obstacle, but that was where anonymity became a bonus. That, and young people were much more fun than most of the other Masters, who tended to be more serious than they should.

Really a shame, Neer thought as he padded down the hallway, looking like a brand-new student who didn\'t know the dress code, or maybe one of the laypeople that worked at the Academy. It invited a cocky older student to mess, or a polite student to meet and greet. Neer just hoped that there would be someone out of their room - it was only a little after noon, so it couldn\'t be that unlikely.

All the same, Neer sure hoped someone showed up soon. He sighed, leaning against the wall at the end of a hallway and looking out a window. Sky\'s pretty today, the dragon thought absentmindedly as he waited for someone to show up.

[Maledict]

Ili was wandering the quarters, humming some strange tune. He\'d been told to leave the training facilities because his \'time was up\' - really, some people could be so rude. Make a mistake causing you to barrel into a group of level 2s, and they whine and YOU get kicked out. Really. He scoffed to think about it.

He had done that a lot recently, which got him to thinking. Perhaps the Tutor who was overseeing his training was right - He should cool off a little bit. Spend a few days planning ahead and studying. Yeah right, time off was R&R time, and no doubt the Tutor knew it. Ili grinned at the prospect. All he needed was some company, and no doubt it\'d work itself out from there...

...Which basically was what brought him to wandering the halls in an absentminded haze. \'My god,\' he thought. \'Did the quarters empty completely during the day or something?

Salvation came upon Ili upon spotting an odd person in the halls. Someone unfamiliar. It didn\'t take much for Ili to be motivated enough to walk up and greet him with a cheerful "Hiya!".

[Fell]

Neer hadn\'t been waiting very long at all when he heard someone walking down the hall. The dragon reached out with his senses, then grinned. Human, he concluded offhandedly, Probably taller than me, certainly heavier...Walks lightly, though. Neer didn\'t turn, though, or give any indication that he\'d heard anyone. That would give it all away, wouldn\'t it? Okay, so it probably wouldn\'t, but Neer liked to pretend.

The blue-haired boy finally flicked his head towards Ili when he got fairly close. Neer grinned when he found himself to be right - Ili was taller than him. And fairly friendly, too... Probably not from Cruori, Veneficus or Confuto, then, Neer thought, smiling at the boy. "Hey," he responded, keeping his nails hidden in the crooks of his arms for now. There was no real point, no, but it was easy enough to do and Neer felt like it. He cocked his head to the side a little bit, looking a little bit confused. "It\'s the middle of the day... Aren\'t students supposed to be working?" the dragon asked curiously. It was a fair question, especially as it was true. This was only a 4th level student, and probably not from any of the aforementioned houses, so there was no way he would have all night classes yet.

And, unfortunately, Neer couldn\'t condone cutting class. Still, the kid seemed a little too happy-go-lucky to have just skipped. Most of the kids who did were very nervous, and kept to themselves. So why was this kid out? Neer looked forward to an answer.

[Maledict]

If the stranger\'s calm reaction was odd to Ili, it didn\'t register. Instead, his grin remained, and he let out a slight laugh. This person could possibly be a Confuto at first glance, considering his dull reply.
"I was training - house Libramen", he replied simply.
"The tutors told me to leave for a while. I mean, really. I -tried- to tell those 2nd Level girls that I hadn\'t been spying, and landing on three of them was an accident, but they just kept yelling and screaming, you know what I mean? And then the Tutor comes up and gives me a stern talking to about my normal studies, saying I should lay off the physical training for a bit - Marksmanship, I suppose I could take a break from. 100% in my last test works nice for me. But I don\'t care what he says about physical training. If I\'m not there I\'ve got nothing to do, and considering the fact that I\'m usually there well past curfew anyway, I have a lot of free time between morning lessons and evening otherwise."

"Tell me, are you new here? If you ARE a student, why are YOU out? I don\'t remember seeing you before, and a student would have a uniform.  But then again, I can talk to someone for an hour and a half and not recall who they are the next time I see them, so I could be wrong!", Ili continued, laughing again, before slipping one hand into his robe, his fingers gently tracing the outline of a kukri safe in a pocket he sewed in. The first thing one learned at a place like this was always keep your guard at least semi-up - One never knew if that new (or even old!) friend of yours was really a friend.

[Fell]

Neer laughed at Ili\'s explanation, a full, bell-like laugh that certainly wasn\'t quiet or calm. The dragon had just needed to know the kid wasn\'t cutting class; now that he knew, Neer felt free to play. His silver eyes twinkled in amusement. "Landing on girls, huh? Sounds like a good way to train to me!" he said, a residual laugh still in his voice. Neer "sobered up", his mouth resolving itself into a playful grin. "Nice job on the marksmenship, by the way. You must be good," he continued, shifting so that he was no longer leaning on the windowsill but against the wall next to it.

"Yeah, I guess I\'m new here," Neer thought. He grinned wickedly on the inside, knowing that what he said was only true in a very limited fashion. Neer tried to never directly lie, but instead practice twisting the truth so that it danced. Technically, he was new here. The things that had been in this hallway in the past week didn\'t include him, which made him a new addition. "So you probably wouldn\'t have seen me before, don\'t worry," Neer continued playfully.

Reaching for a weapon? Neer thought lazily. He didn\'t move at all; he wasn\'t worried. If the kid tried to throw it at him. Neer would be gone in an instant. And fairly pissed as well - it would be so rude! But Ili didn\'t look like he was about to start tossing blades around. Comfort thing, Neer guessed. "What\'s your name? I\'m Neer!" the dragon offered along with a hand. He wondered just how paranoid this guy was. Some assassins wouldn\'t shake hands with anyone, fearing that they were trying to poison them. Neer wasn\'t that worried about being poisoned by a 4th level student from Libramen, though he was certainly staying aware.

[Maledict]

Ili grinned with the slightest of blushes at the... I suppose friend\'s compliment. He was extremely proud of his throwing prowess.
"I dunno about the girls thing, but I\'m always happy to receive a compliment." He answered, noting his laugh. He\'d like to see that more often.

He frowned at the hand offered to him, looking closely, hopefully imperceptibly, for traces of water. Water. He shuddered at the thought. But Neer seemed innocent enough, so he shook his hand, answering "I\'m Ili." politely.

"Wait a minute...", Ili started. "If you were new here, shouldn\'t someone have greeted you? How else do you get the fancy keys and these blasted trappings?"
It was an important point to him. Someone apparently forgot about him when he showed up and spent three hours wandering till an impatient 1st level finally pointed him in the right direction.

[Fell]

"Hn?" Neer said softly, cocking his head to the side. He withdrew his hand for a moment, examining it from all directions. He was trying to figure out what the boy had been looking at. "Is there something on my hand?" the dark-haired boy asked curiously, poking at it with his other. In truth, Neer was just playing. It would be fun to see how this student reacted to his display. It almost always was.

They ended up shaking anyway, though. "Pleased to meet you," Neer responded politely, though his grin was playful and a little wild. "I guess someone should greet the new guys, but it looks like no one does," the water dragon responded, laughing a little bit. Again, it was all true... Just not, you know, the way Ili probably thought he meant it. As far as the keys and trappings went... "And I don\'t have either of those things..." Neer said, again truthful, though for another reason. He didn\'t need keys because he lost them anyway, and he could pick locks besides. As far as the trappings went, his station had outgrown them.

What a fun game! Neer concluded about this game of dancing truths. He could have to play it more often. He grinned at Ili; waiting here seemed to have been a good idea after all.

[Maledict]

"Is there something on my hand?", Neer had asked after shaking hands, and Ili was at odds with himself to respond. His hydrophobia was almost crippling, and quite an important secret. He managed to keep himself clean, even if he almost vomited afterwards most of the time. Deciding to keep it to himself, he just shook his head.
"Pleased to meet you as well."

Listening intently, it seemed to Ili that Neer\'s voice was a little too deep, his appearance too, I suppose, aged, for him to have only recently enrolled. He had seen very few people older than him in a position lower, and that was because of his rapid rate of advancement - for a Libramen, anyway.

Ili cocked his head. "This spot is getting a little boring, innit?", He asked. It was only then he noticed the complete absence of others. The place hadn\'t been disturbed at all since he got there.
"What say we go for a wander?"

[Fell]

((Neer actually looks younger than Ili does XD))

"A wander, huh?" Neer asked, amused. That was a phrase he hadn\'t heard before. It also struck Neer as odd, how quickly Ili seemed to bore of a place. Then again, that was true of many humans. Human thing, perhaps, the dragon thought. Short lives, so they rush. Neer wasn\'t exactly the model of patience himself, but he would have been able to stay in that spot for as long as he needed or wanted to without a problem. "Sounds good to me! Where do you have in mind?" he asked, cocking his head to match Ili\'s own.

Neer hoped they would be going outside. He felt like being outdoors now, for one reasons or another. The dragon bounced lightly on his feet, waiting for the other\'s response. Maybe he\'ll try to give me a tour of the grounds, Neer thought with an inner snicker. It was always funny when that happened, as it did from time to time.

It would also be funny if Ili ever ended up in one of Neer\'s classes... The dragon almost hoped he did, someday. That would make Ili pretty advanced for a Libramen, though, as Neer taught mostly older students. Then again... Neer had taught 4th levels before, and it was only one more level to third. So who knew?

[Maledict]

((It seems (according to character sheets) that most people apply at a relatively young age (<13), so even if Neer looks younger than Ili, Ili can still have suspicions based on observations. He\'s naive by appearance, but he\'s not stupid.))

"A wander?", Neer had asked. Ili un-cocked his head, and gave a flash of teeth with a grin.
"Yep, that\'s right. A wander, a trudge, a march if you so wish." Ili replied with a chuckle. It seemed a good idea, and he had too much energy from his cut-short \'classes\' to spend the rest of the day acting like a common lollygagger. However, this vague excitement was cut short when Neer had asked a question he didn\'t expect: "Where do you have in mind?"

Ili shrugged. Truthfully, he didn\'t have a clue. He generally just, as the name suggested, wandered around. But, then again, he never explored the grounds as much as he\'d liked to, his range extending to the throwing weapons range, the athletics and acrobatics courses, and the Academy itself. "Outside?", he suggested. Was the best idea he had, and so it would have to do.

[Fell]

((Oh, I don\'t mind the suspicion! I was just pointing that out. : ) ))

...I guess you don\'t plan ahead with these things, Neer thought as he watched Ili\'s reaction to his question about where they would be going. There was nothing wrong with it; in fact, it could make life a lot more fun. Or, it could be disastrous. Planning things on the fly could go either way, really. Neer, for one, often took his chances.

"Outside?" Neer repeated, breaking into a large, delighted grin. Maybe the mortal had a talent for reading people\'s minds. Or maybe, as Neer hadn\'t felt anything in his mind, Ili had just made a lucky guess. Either way, Neer was happy. "I would love it! I like the outdoors," the dragon continued, clearly pleased with this suggestion.

Silver eyes looked up into Ili\'s own. "Well.... Lead the way!" Neer said playfully, still acting the part of a new student. A new student or new... something, anyway. It would be interesting to see where Ili went first. Sometimes, it could be telling of a person. Oftentimes, it wasn\'t telling at all and served for little more than knowing where they\'d gone first when told to go outside. It could easily go either way, but Neer was willing to keep an open mind.

[Maledict]

((Oh, I just argue points to the death if it would make me look foolish or similar. I\'m a proud man.))

"Well... Lead the way!"
Ili had barely heard him. He was still considering where to actually go. There was a lot of the grounds that he hadn\'t seen, but he had taken an interest in the dense forestry. Seemed to him like a good place to hide, and practice when he wasn\'t allowed in the facilities. But that would all be determined if he actually checked the place out. "Forest." He mumbled to himself. Even if the boy he was with wanted a tour, he wouldn\'t be much help. He knew less about the grounds than most 6th-levels. Never seemed to be interesting to him.

He nodded to himself, the very one-sided debate in his head finished, and started to move, grabbing Neer\'s hand as he walked past, and releasing it shortly after - just long enough to point out which way they were going, and turn Neer around so he could see that too.
"There\'s a foresty part that you may have noticed coming into the Academy. Care to have a look?"

[Fell]

Oh, the forest then! Neer thought, both pleased and somewhat surprised. Most of the students didn\'t frequent the forest, but perhaps Ili was different in that regard. It was a dangerous place, potentially, but nothing was truly safe at the Academy. Just last week, there\'d been a case of someone trying to kill their roommate. It happened more often than one might think - especially in Cruori. No surprises there, the dragon thought wryly.

It actually took conscious effort not to flip out when Ili grabbed his hand, but Neer managed it in time. He noted that it was the same hand he\'d shaken just moments before, too - not the other one, which was less familiar. It would have been difficult for Ili to slip any poisons or daggers into his hand without Neer noticing, and the dragon had checked for rings before shaking in the first place.

Still, it seemed like a very bad call to make at the Academy. "Do people freak out if you take their hands and stuff, usually?" Neer asked after Ili let go. "I was thinking about it earlier..." It was true "...and I was wondering if everyone was really jumpy or not." Certainly, the students Neer dealt with were. Most people at the Academy, save the youngest students and most of the servants, were. Part of the training; kept most of them alive, too.

"Ah - and the forest sounds like fun. Is there anything in it?" the oddly-attired boy asked, his silver eyes large and curious. He was asking questions he knew the answers to, true, but now it was more than just play. Neer was also gaging just how much Ili knew and how capable he was. It wasn\'t a test, not really - just an evaluation. Neer wondered how Ili would do.

[Maledict]

(Sorry about the ridiculously long wait on the reply! ^^; )

Probably not the best idea to grab him, Ili thought to himself immediately after pulling him into the right direction. But, it probably wouldn\'t matter. Neer didn\'t have the look of someone who\'d kill over something that small - but then again, a lot of people here didn\'t. Except Cruori. Those people looked like, and were, ticking time bombs of destruction.

"Do people freak out if you take their hands and stuff, usually?" Neer asked after Ili let go.
"Probably," Ili replied, "But I pay no mind. People usually think me harmless, which suits me just fine - and why would I kill a new friend?"
It was true. He ignored people if they flipped out, which was, remarkably enough, not very often. Even the most paranoid of his classmates thought he was just a childish, naive idiot. But he did have moments of extreme clarity or aggression. They just didn\'t tend to occur when people were around.

"Ah - and the forest sounds like fun. Is there anything in it?" the oddly-attired boy asked, his silver eyes large and curious.
Ili grinned. "I\'ve got absolutely no idea - that\'s why I suggested it. Looks like it\'d be fun to poke through, though. Besides - If there\'s something dangerous in there, that makes it all the more fun!" He replied, before letting out a light laugh. "Come on!" He called, gesturing quickly.

[Fell]

What a light-hearted guy... Neer thought, somewhat surprised. Most students here were real sticks in the mud, so it was nice to meet one with a sense of play! Still, he was in training to kill people for a living. It was a fact that often escaped people at the academy, especially when looking at those like Ili. They were in training to kill people. And that simple fact meant that not a one of them was truly harmless. The harmless ones were kicked out of the training before they reached 7th level, usually. It was rare that someone who wasn\'t very dangerous graduated from 8th level to 7th level in the required 2 years. And so, Neer wouldn\'t be undervaluing his new friend, however child-like he might seem.

"All the more fun, huh?" Neer asked, grinning cheekily. You should respect danger more, the dragon thought inwardly. If there met very dangerous things in the forest - and Neer had run into a few very dangerous things himself - then it would be no laughing matter. It was unlikely, though, to meet any at this time of the day and year. Winter, and night, were the most dangerous times. So, Neer would let himself have fun. As though he normally didn\'t.

"Race you!" Neer called, accelerating into a quick, light run. He didn\'t go all-out on purpose, electing to instead make a race of it. Besides, Ili might be able to really give him a run for his money! House Libramen was known for its agility, so who knew? Neer looked forward to finding out.