Thora Ulrich & Jin Yoshida
I hear the river say your name
By the stars above, I know we were in love
I hear the river say your name
By the stars above, I know we were in love
I hear the river say your name
Noah Doryu & Marlee Hudson
In every window, I pass
Your reflection in the glass
Makes me wonder if my mind is going
Shadows shifting in the rain
Slowly driving me insane
Your reflection in the glass
Makes me wonder if my mind is going
Shadows shifting in the rain
Slowly driving me insane
Thora Ulrich | "You say I'm never fooled by the depth in your eyes, but I don't agree"
Impatiently, Thora checks her watch for what feels like the fifth time as she sits in the headmaster's office. The headmaster had asked Thora this morning to stop by around noon that morning when she'd been having breakfast with her adoptive sister in the dining hall. For once, Thora had actually done as she was told and showed up a little past noon. Twenty minutes later and there was still no sign of the headmaster- and Thora couldn't figure out what it was he wanted to see her about. While the girls were at school, as they'd been all summer, classes had not started back up. And Thora had been keeping a relatively low profile the past couple months. And even if she wanted to cause trouble, it would of been hard. The rising conflicts between the community and the Rebellion- led by the girl's father, had caused the Community to send a couple brigades of soldiers to the school. However, because Marlee's father was leading the rebellion it was decided that Marlee could be in more risk than the others, and she'd been assigned her own bodyguard, Noah.
A babysitter really, because while he kept Marlee safe, he also made sure that Thora couldn't get into any mischief. Which is yet another reason Thora can't figure out why the headmaster had asked to see her. Usually when she landed in his office, it was due to something she'd done. She's half-considering leaving a note and going to find Marlee instead of waiting around when she picks up on the faint sound of approaching footsteps, and voices. Furrowing her brow Thora strains to hear though can't pick up on exact words. Thora's still listening when the door is carefully opened. "Ah, Thora you made it. I was worried you would wander off, sorry to make you wait." The headmaster greets, rambling already as he makes his way to his seat. Curiously, his guest isn't with him- instead Thora can hear their heartbeat behind the door. However she puls her attention away from the door and back to the headmaster. She shrugs off his apology with an easy, "Considered it. Why exactly am I here?" The headmaster waves his hand, settling back against his chair with a thoughtful expression.
"Thora, we've previously discussed your lack of control over your abilities at length before. Several times." It's true, but it still brings a sting of shame to the young hellhound. She'd been orphaned young, her breed was already dying out. Previous teachers had never had much luck with trying to teach the willful blonde control over her beast. But still Headmaster Eldrin continues on. "Well, I didn't want to get your hopes up but this Summer I've been extensively searching for someone who I believe is capable of teaching you." This has Thora's interest, and her brows scrunch with curiosity. "Mr. Yoshida, you may come in now." The door opens, revealing a young man. Thora wouldn't guess he was any older than seven, eight years. But his appearance wasn't what Thora noticed, not at first. Instead it was his scent. It had drifted in a few moments before he had, but it was unmistakable; another hellhound. But there was something else alongside that hellhound scent; something different and yet familiar somehow. Thora doesn't even realize it at first as she gets to her feet, moving away from the headmaster towards the unfamiliar hellhound. "Thora Ulrich, meet your new Abilities teacher. Jin, this is Thora."
She barely hears Eldrin continues. She has so many questions, this is the first hellhound, or at least partial hellhound, that Thora can remember meeting. There's almost a feeling of being overwhelmed, but its not entirely unpleasant. "He will be teaching you exclusively Thora. No distractions from other classmates, and someone who... Ahem understands the intricacies of your species." Feeling herself nod, Thora nervously crosses her arms over her chest, looking between the two. "When do we start?" The headmaster glances to Jin and gives a thin smile. "I suppose that would be your call. We've cleared the old archery field for you two to practice in. It's been spelled so it will be flame resistant and we don't have to worry about causing harm to the students or the building." Biting her lip, she looks to Jin- or Mr. Yoshida. She supposed she'd have to ask. "So, you really think you can teach me?" She turns to him, raising a slender eyebrow. Thora wasn't an easy student, and controlling her bestial side had always been harder than any traditional math or history. Did this man, who hardly looked older than herself, really have the know how to teach her? The headmaster clearly believed so, but Thora had always erred on the side of reserved cynicism.
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Noah Doryu | "But there's blood on my hands, and my lips are unclean."
"Here, the kitchen had two left." Noah sets a piece of strawberry pie down in front of his assignment, Marlee Hudson. As the daughter of the leader of the Rebellion, the Community and Marlee's own mother had been worried about her safety. So, Noah a soldier had been selected from some of the more elite soldiers as her bodyguard. He wasn't pleased at first. He had wanted to have a more active role in protecting the community, not a single student. The first couple months had been rough for both of them, as Marlee had wanted Noah to be there about as much as he did. But about a month ago a conversation with his sister, a rare thing for Noah, had changed his perspective. "Think of all the things she's been through Noah. You can't be impatient as usual. Earn her trust, and maybe the assignment won't be as bad as you're making it to be." A simple scold really, but enough to make Noah realize she was right, as usual. So Noah had been working on doing his best to at least earn Marlee's trust that he wasn't there to make her life worse. That hopefully his presence wasn't needed, but if it was Noah would absolutely do his job and protect the young fae. He'd been working on small things, and it seemed to be paying off. While they weren't exactly friends, the two had warmed up noticeably towards one another.
Currently, Marlee was sat at one of the tables in the courtyard, a flower pot in front of her. Noah would assume that she was practicing, trying to make the plant bloom. She doesn't acknowledge him at first, her eyebrows knitted together in concentration. Noah was always one to respect a strong work ethic, so instead of bothering her he slides into the bench across from her, watching with mute interest. The harsh rays of the summer sun beat down upon his back, though this doesn't bother the draconian. He was built for the heat. After a few minutes of stretched silence, and no results Marlee sighs and drops her hand. "Eat some pie, you'll feel better." Noah advises in an almost sagely tone. He's not used to it being just the two of them. Normally Marlee's adoptive sister, Thora was around. Today however, she was meeting with the headmaster for unknown reasons. He leans his elbow on the table, putting his chin in his hand as he instinctively checks the area. No threats, no surprise. This school was spelled with just about every kind of protection, and warding spell one could think of. It was certainly a formidable defense, but Noah knew that you always had to be ready in case it failed and something slipped through. But he hadn't heard any recent developments, and no news was good news if you asked Noah.
"That was some advanced fae magic you were practicing." Noah remarks after a minute, almost lazily as he studies her from the corner of his eye. If he was honest, as a soldier he was impressed that initiative. "Trying to get a head start on your fae classmates?" There's a missable note of humor in Noah's voice. They'd been stuck at the school most the summer, there wasn't much to do. It was smart for Marlee to work on sharpening her abilities. From what he understood, the Hudson family was an old family of Fae. Magic ran deep, and wild in their blood. The better control Marlee had, the better off she'd be if you asked Noah. Though he wasn't really worried about her following her father's footsteps. A welcome breeze stirs across his back, rustling the nearby leaves. This school hadn't changed much from when he'd been a student here, not that many years ago. You wouldn't even guess the troubles that plagued the Community outside these walls. "It's hard to believe in a couple weeks the school will start back up." Noah muses, mostly to fill the silence that had welled since his earlier question. "How do you feel about going back?" He'd been told before he started this job, that Thora and Marlee had a harder time with other students. For Marlee, the reason was fairly obvious.
Her family had a mixed reputation before Thomas. After the rebellion- students hadn't exactly given the young fae an easy time. Noah suspect that wasn't going to get better with the coming year. Kids could be cruel, and sadly he also suspected Marlee knew this. He listens to her answer, shifting so he's leaning on the table with both elbows. The summer sun sends golden highlights through her hair, kissing her skin as well with dappled light. It's hard for Noah to believe that anyone, student or staff, could seriously think she posed a threat. It annoyed him, maybe a little more than it should of, that people could mistreat her based solely on the sins of her father. It was obvious to him, that she was just a girl caught up in a war that had cost her as much as the next person- if not more. It at least brought him a little relief to know that Marlee had at least Thora, and the headmaster. Noah too, would do his job and keep her safe from outside threats.
June 24th, 2019 at 05:08am
