Zmerr walked up to the school, letter and stable plans in hand. He'd take it to Archmagister Cadmus' mail box. He hoped he'd see it soon so that he could get started already so that he would have it finished by winter.

He passed the registrar's office. He paused and turned back around. He stopped at the office this time. Inside were a few new students and Pyria.

"Good day, Lady Pyria." He smiled and gave her a playful bow. "How goes the influx of newbies today?" He leaned on the desk and watched as she pulled paperwork together for a human girl. "Need some help?" He asked when he noticed the slight fire of annoyance in Pyria's eyes.

Pyria gave him a look. "If by 'help', you mean more papers to process, then no. If you've come to help me deal with this, then I welcome it. Is that mail I see? If it's for my father, I'll deliver it to him when I see him later. And yeah, we have some new students. They all seem to think the best time to enroll is at night" the half-dragon said.

"I heard there was a fire outside. At the stable? What was that about?" She asked, she rubbed her right shoulder, trying to work out the pain she had from the stress she had there.

"Yeah. There was a huge fire. It burned up a huge chunk of the stable." Zmerr sat down at the desk, handing Pyria the letter. "That's a request to build a new stable altogether. Plans are included." He started taking acceptance letters from students and writing their names down. He handed each their appropriate schedules and rooming assignments. "Did you get any sleep last night?" He looked at a droppy-eyed Pyria.

Pyria put her papers away. "Seems like its been a week since I've seen my bed. Then again, I'm part-dragon, so we tend to sleep more than most species. If it's been twelve hours since I slept, it's like a day for most others." She got up and stretched, letting out a little roar. "My shift is just about done. As for the fire, well, I'm sure my father can take care of it. If people had died or it were more serious, I would have heard about it earlier. Anyway, I'll make sure my father gets the plans." She winced a bit as her shoulder still hurt. "Oh, and thanks for the help with the papers. I really appreciate it."

The half-dragon tried to ease the tension in her shoulder with her left hand, but the knots proved to be quite stubborn.

"Go ahead and at least take a nap. I can cover you from here." Zmerr said, tapping the bottom of a pile of papers on the desk to make them even. "I can't really get any of my stuff done until that gets approved... or denied, so I really don't have anything to do." He smiled at the Dracon. He liked her personality. She was a bit like him. She honestly cared, it just didn't always look like it.

He watched her leave, taking a letter from another student. He actually enjoyed this job. He got to meet new people and study their race and background.

Pyria didn't go very far. She dropped the letter off at her father's sanctum and returned to the registrar's office.

"What are you still doing here? There's nothing else to do here now, and I just dropped off your notes with my father. If you want to help, maybe you could take a hint" she replied, once again rubbing her aching shoulders.

Zmerr blinked at her, confused. He looked at the room still holding a few new students. "I'm afraid I didn't get the hint. But now I'm getting the idea you want me to leave." He stood up and shifted the pile he'd collected over to the side. "I apologize if I've been a nuisance." He looked at her questioningly as he moved toward the door. "Have a good day..." He gave her a little nod.

That was an interesting interaction. He didn't even realize she was coming back. He was hoping he'd come across as kind. Not annoying. He didn't want recognition, but he at least wanted to give the tired dracon a break. Well, it was ultimately her choice. He wasn't getting paid for that job anyways.

Pyria sighed. "Do I have to spell it out for you? It's been a long day and my shoulders hurt. We can go to my room and maybe you can help me with that. Also, thanks again for helping with the papers."

The half-dragon (not a dracon) gave Zmerr a little smile.

Suddenly it was clear. "Uh, sure!" Zmerr smiled back. That sounds good. Shall I run home and grab some tea bags? I packed them myself." Zmerr was quite fond of tea. After living in the jungle for a long time, he'd learned how to make his own tea. It was necessary in the jungle because, even after boiling the water, it still tasted like muddy river.

"I am so sorry to be impertinent. I'll not ask you any more questions. Good day to you, Lady Pyria." Mystique whispered in awe when another being came in. She took the papers and then gasped when she heard that the stables was burned down. She thought about what to do with Shadow as she slipped towards the back of the room where she could reorganize her papers and her mind.

"Now what can I do with Shadow? I have no place to stable him or feeding him......" She sagged down against the wall and pulled her knees up to quietly think. She barely heard the other people who came inside and Mystique finally slipped outside. She slowly took off the saddle and reins off of Shadow.

"Run along Shadow but stay close by so if I can figure out where to stable you, then I can find you easily. But for now I must take things upstairs to the dorm. " Mystique picked up the reins and wrapped them around her neck. The she picked up the saddle and headed to the dorm room where she was suppose to head to. The saddle was very heavy and Mystique was having a bit of trouble carrying it.

Pyria nodded to Mystique. "Good day. If you need help, I am duty-bound to assist."

She turned to Zmerr "I'd like some tea. We can have it in my room. It's not far from here." She was grateful for the break. This season was the busiest for her, although there wasn't a set start or end of the school year. Students showed up and left as their academic requirements and progress demanded.

"Alright. Then I will meet you here? Or perhaps you'd like to come with me? Even better. Just tell me your room number. I'll be there shortly." Zmerr gave her another smile, pleased to see that he'd seemed to strike a good note with the dracon. "Any particular kind of tea you like? I have pretty much any kind. Since my days in the jungle, I've kind of taken up tea-making as a hobby." Zmerr scratched his head almost in embarrassment.

(Asthia is the dracon, Pyria is a half-dragon. This is confusing, I know. xD)

She told him where her room was. "Some green tea would be nice. I'll be in my room. Don't take too long." Pyria still wasn't sure about Zmerr. He had worked at the academy for a while, but she hadn't seem him much, given their very different roles. She went to her room and changed out of her brown loincloth and top in favor of a much lighter set, made of bright pink silk. She got some tea servers out, along with a pot, tray, and cups, plus a bit of sugar and tongs. Then she lit some incense in a brazier, set out a pair of cushions on either end of her low, circular table, and, seeing as she still had some time, briefly applied some polish to her horns and claws, then sat down on the cushion, awaiting Zmerr.

Bryce Turned as the door opened again and to his surprise a Large cat walked into the room with a rather odd choice of words following his introduction.. Bryce looked a bit puzzled at first and thought to himself "if this cat wanted to have his way with me i won't have a fighting chance." Bryce quickly prayed to himself mentally before correcting and introducing himself to Nyame. "Hey how are you doing this evening my Name is Bryce and i kinda wondered who the other bed was for. Well hey for what it’s worth me and Ashtia were gonna explore the campus grounds a bit you can come to if you like” he said as he awaited the answer of Mr.Starcaller as he thought to himself “I have never really been one for friends but I find it here that everyone is so easy to talk to this seems like a good place to be now for a bit of fun”

"Yeah, you can join us if you like" Asthia added. "We're all new students here, and the night is still young... well, sorta." It was getting late, but not so late that they couldn't take an hour or so to explore the academy. "As long as we don't get ourselves in trouble before our first classes start, we should be perfectly fine."

The dracon extended her hand to Nyame, hoping this was a gesture his people would recognize. "And for what it's worth, you have a very nice mane."

Zmerr made his way home quickly to ensure that Pyria did not wait long. Once inside, he put on clean clothes (as he wore the tattered clothes for working in the stable) and grabbed a few bags of green tea. He preferred the black tea himself, but it was easier to just grab a handful of the same kind.

Zmerr knew exactly where Pyria's building was. He new where EVERYTHING was on campus. He just had to find the right door. He had written the number she'd given him on his hand and he now held that hand up to compare the number with the ones above the doors. Finally, he came across Pyria's door. He knocked softly, but confidently on the heavy, dark wood.

Pyria opened the door to her room. "Come on in. I'm just putting on a few finishing touches." She shut the door behind them and pulled over a cushion for him. "Go on, make yourself comfortable. Does your species have claws? I can give you some polish for them if you want." The half-dragon pulled over a few more cushions, in case they wanted to use them. She had her back to him for the moment.

"And if you have any footwear, please take it off." She was embarrassed that she didn't think to check. She had cleaned her claws off shortly after entering her room and didn't want anyone to track dirt on the carpet.

"I have no claws. But I do have boots." He chuckled a little, removing them and leaving them by the door. He came to sit at the round table. He placed a few bags of tea on the table. "Fresh and hand picked." He smiled again.

"Sounds good." Pyria took the herbs and brewed the tea. She poured herself a cup, and one for him. It was a surprisingly good drink, one she greatly appreciated since her workload had increased. "So, Zmerr, apart from the recent fire, how has your work been?"

"Pretty much, business as usual. Cleaning and cooking from time to time." He sipped his tea. He usually liked his tea, but this seemed better than usual. He wondered what she did different. "The load does seem to be getting bigger though. A lot more students are coming in. But it's fair. I'm not paying rent so it's okay. Besides, I'd be pretty bored if I didn't have a full schedule. Sometimes my boredom can be dangerous." He chuckled a little, remembering all the times his failed experiments had exploded. "I tend to get creative to make up for the lack of activity and sometimes I mess something up." He put his half-empty cup on the table and turned it in his hand. He looked at it for a moment before looking at Pyria again. "I see that you too are experiencing the effects of such a large influx of newbies."