[center][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpIL97i17zk]Neutrality[/url]

[hider=The Academy’s Elegance][img]http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/061/6/4/alongthepenobscot_jadriencousens_by_jadrienc-d5wr0ua.png[/img][/HIDER][/center]

Varren gritted his teeth, shielding his eyes from the blinding light as it encroched on his eyelids.  Without a moment wasted, the boy reopened them and was faced with a similar terrain to the one he had just departed from.  The boy nearly fell off of his griffin out of amazement, before the flow of griffins was an endless scape of white stretching beyond the horizon.  At this point, other beasts of myth and lore bearing other students draped in different uniforms began to branch off from the large clump of youthful aspiration.  The only bliss he was obliged to was a slight change in climate, yet he would be forced to bear the frigid temperature for the next hour.  The main unit of aviators passed a slew of academies, with small groupings splitting off at every stop.  The academy Varren was attending was located in the known middle of the Black Gale.  Of course those which are closer to their corresponding portal are more sided with whatever world established them first, yet there were a few which claimed true unbiased neutrality.  This gave way to the demolishment of leverage, and created a sense of equality to circulate throughout the campus.  But due to its placement, it was quite the excruciating journey.  The boy couldn’t help but to giddily grin as he hugged onto the griffin tightly.  [b]“Alright, Mr. G!, we’re gonna go in for a fast landing.  This is Yinyues six-four to Academy Base, how copy?”[/b] Alas, the boy’s innocent ramblings were only met with the frozen wind as a response.  After a journey full of sneezes, wails, and miracle saves at keeping his balance, the section of griffins bearing academy students parted ways with the traveling conglomerate.  

Varren peered down while tightening his grip on the beast, only hanging his upper torso over its streamline figure ever so slightly, just enough to get a decent bird’s eye view.  He scanned for the landing zone and ended up focusing on what appeared to be a medium between a dock and an airport.  He wasn’t able to make out much, given the fact that the entire surface was covered in a fine layer of pure white.  The campus itself was gigantic, large enough that the student was unable to see its edges through the snow, and could only make out faint silouhettes in the distance.  He began to narrow his eyes as he attempted to mentally paint out what he imaged the appearance of said buildings would be.  Actually, the boy was so focused, he had forgotten the sudden change in gravity.  [b]“Oh~! This… Happened…”[/b] What started off ecstatic quickly transformed itself in a shamble of dread.  His griffin had completely flipped itself over, forcing the boy to hang on for dear life.  The creature then launched itself into a nose-dove, keeping Varren by the fingertips as it made its swift descent.  He could see his life flash before his eyes, all of it.  All those times he had outsmarted his classmates, also all the countless visits to the range, even the funeral he held for his first coffee cup.  Well, in retrospect, doesn’t seem to have been that much of an eventful life.  

Rather than flailing him into a nice rosey decoration to the landscape, the bird arched its back and bleated its speed.  The landing was surely elegant, but was hard enough to squeeze out the last ounce of measly strength in Varren’s fingers.  His face was void of expression, as if he had just come face to face with the devil.  He unconsciously slipped off of the bird’s side and fell back into the snow.  The grey sky was all he could register in his dazed state.  But soon enough the gears of youthfulness began to churn again.  [b]“That was a fun ride! Could’ve been a bit smoother Mr. G, but that’s alright.  I rate it a nine out o-”[/b] He was cut off mid-sentence when the griffin narrowed its beaded eyes at him, [b]“I of course mean… ten out of ten!  Yeah!  I’ll tip you later.  You can name my first born, alright~?”[/b] The creature only muttered a grunt at Varren’s terms before propelling itself off the ground, covering the boy in a coat of blown snow as it set out to real in another student from their homage.

The boy spun around on the heel of his foot and patted himself down with hands already numb from the snow.  He tightened his scarf, then dug into his cases and sifted through its contents.  [b]“Let’s see… Gun… Magazines… Gum… Some more magazines… Bit of manga… Alright, all set.”[/b] With a quicky crossing of his arms he gave a nod of approval.  Definitely not to himself, but to the thoughtfulness of whichever butler packed his case.  He exhaled and idly watched as the heated air dissipated, then glanced up at the continuous flow of griffin traffic.  The student wasn’t entirely sure about the layout of the academy, surely they would be brochures distributed later on.  The boy was caught off guard when he heard a loud crackling sound renown through the entire campus.  He would have fallen back into the snow if he hadn’t managed to keep his balance.  

After a few moments of suspense, the auditor cleared her throat before speaking, [b][u]”We hope that your arrival to the Academy of the Arcane Artes was as smooth as it was enjoyable.  For now, we would like to ask you to take your luggage and proceed to the main hall and follow instructions given by teachers for your sitting location.”[/u][/b] The monotonous voice continued to repeat the message with no avail.  [b][u]”For now, we would li- Headmaster, what are you doing?"[/u][/b] The voice once bland was now surprised all of a sudden.  [b][u]”All students who are currently standing around like a bunch of uninformed buffoons, please proceed into the main hall. As for those of you who still intend to loligag- sorry, I mean lollygag, I advise that you follow the same suit, before I shove my lower-right crystalline edge up your rea-”[/u][/b] The voice suddenly diminished in volume, as if it had been yanked away from the microphone.  All that could be heard was the crackling of timbers and flames.  After a few moments the womanly voice from earlier regained her composure, apologized for the interruption, and continued with the procedural announcement.  The boy glanced around at the incoming students and shrugged, wondering which of them would be his possible classmates.  [i]”Guess we’ll find out later~! Or maybe sooner than I expect.  Tune in next time, on Varren Ball Z-”[/i] And then Varren got decked in the face by a stray snowball.  Oh winter, so beautiful, yet so cruel.  The boy decided to linger for a few moments before proceeding towards the line filing into what he presumed was the main hall.