[hr][hr][center][h2][color=00ffbb]Lawrence B. Ellison[/color][/h2]
[img]http://i67.tinypic.com/zkl46a.png[/img]
An Apartment Somewhere on Campus. Population: Lawrence, Hazel, and Emma
[@Diggerton][@GreenGoat][/center][hr][hr]

By the time Lawrence returned to his apartment exhaustion was the only thing on his mind. Had he really only been gone thirty minutes? It was his second welcoming ceremony in a row that had ended in blood being spilled- thankfully not his. Of course there were the minor incidents of his peers backtalking him, but he would be lying if he said he cared. He was pissed off too when he was first brought to USARILN East, and people bitching at him was nothing new.

[color=00ffbb][i]Not liking the answer doesn't change it.[/i][/color] 

He had almost protested being led back to his apartment by guards, but kept his mouth shut. Wisdom was knowing which battles were worth fighting. Instead, finished his coffee on the return trip and let his thoughts occupy him along the way. Two women was certainly a different arrangement than he had been expecting. He knew of course that the Institution didn't give a damn about mixing genders, his last roommate had also been a woman. Two though was going to be a different experience. That and these two were both Aberrations. He had a feeling that his life was about to change drastically, and wasn't exactly looking forward to it.

Still, nothing to do about it now. Once they had reached their destination the guards quickly made themselves scarce, and Lawrence finally turned to his two roommates. Neither had spoken at the debacle earlier, and even if they had it wasn't exactly the type of situation where you got to know somebody's true self. Simply put, the two of them were a mystery, and both were Aberrations. If they hadn't gotten bitchy back in that situation then he doubted he could do much to rile them up, but he was still cautious of having his head bitten off.

"[color=00ffbb]So yeah, name's Lawrence. Sorry that your powers manifested, but now you're here and we'll be living together. I don't really know what your powers are but please if you're going to blow the place up make sure to do it when I'm out, or at least when I'm awake. My own alarm is bad enough.[/color]"

"[color=8A3DFF]I'm Emma, but I guess you know that already... it's nice to meet you Lawrence, and you too Hazel. I'm sorry if we're intruding Lawrence, but I hope we can get along...[/color]" 

As she spoke Lawrence took his key and unlocked the door. Emma and Hazel, huh? He took a second to try and internalize the names before pushing the door open. Almost as an afterthought he added:

"[color=00ffbb]Oh, I hope neither of you are allergic to d-[/color]"

[color=AC58FA][b][i]STARE[/i][/b][/color]

On the other side of the door sat a creature of hunger and energy. With a gaze that could bore holes into the side of a mountain, and a tenacity for attention that could rival any pop diva. A beast of instinct. An animal so fierce that it would charge a group of monsters and try to herd them like cattle. The average Border Collie.

Lawrence crouched down in front of it and met the creature's gaze, instituting a battle of wills. He knew what it desired, what it [i]demanded[/i], and yet held his ground. Slowly his hand reached forward, as if afraid to touch it.

[color=AC58FA][i]Swish[/i][/color]

It's tail answered him, flickering between the approaching hand and Lawrence's face.

[color=AC58FA][i]Swish swish swish[/i][/color]

Finally, contact. His hand reached the back of the beasts ears and began a welcoming scratch. Lawrence finally spoke:

"[color=00ffbb]I don't have any food with me this time, Lizzy.[/color]"

Immediately the swaying of her tail stopped and the dog replied with a snort of derision. She wasted no time in standing up and marching towards his bed, curling up beside it. A crushing disappointment she'd no doubt forget in a moment. Ignoring her, Lawrence stood and stretched before removing his jacket and hanging it up beside the door. Afterwards, he took a quick moment to look over the apartment for any mess he missed.

Overall, the place could be called spartan. Lawrence clearly didn't have an eye for decoration, and it overall looked much the same as any of the other apartments that his peers would be settling into at that moment. Of notable different was the stack of books ([i]The Alexiad. Heart of Darkness. Sarajevo Marlboro. For the Common Good: The Bohemian Land Law and the Beginning of the Hussite Revolution. Swordsmen of the British Empire.[/i]) resting on the counter of the kitchen, and his coffee pot just a short distance from them. Of small note was a loaf of half-eaten bread also occupying the counter.
Satisfied that the place was sufficiently tidy for the new arrivals, he turn to them once more, scratching the back of his head as he spoke:

"[color=00ffbb]You guys have had a longer day than I have, you can have first dibs on the shower tonight if you want. Fridge is pretty empty, but there's a pot of coffee if that's your thing, but I figure you'll want to be heading to sleep instead of staying up. Your welcome was... well, about the same as mine, it's probably better if you try to relax and not think about it too much.[/color]"

"[color=8A3DFF]Thank you Lawrence, but... I just got here so I'm going to collect my stuff, then I'd like to take a look around campus, alright? I'll be back before curfew.[/color]"

Lawrence merely nodded in response to her. It seemed like both of his roommates were the quiet types, or at least shell-shocked. He would take all the peace and quiet he could get at the moment.  And the future. That, however, was another matter entirely. Seeing as how neither of his roommates had taken upon themselves to occupy the bathroom, Lawrence began heading that way in earnest. While he had already showered before the first time he had fallen asleep that day, exceptional circumstances called for exceptional action. He needed to relax.

Ignoring the reflection in the mirror as he locked the door behind him, the mage ran the shower as hot as he could handle before stripping down and climbing in. He ignored the (admittedly cheap) soap and shampoo resting against the wall of the shower, and instead focused on the water hitting him. He wasn't here to clean himself, at least not physically. As the waves of heat flowed through him, he let the days events flow out. The new arrivals, their words, the dead soldier, the injured students. He could, at this point, do nothing to alter the events of the past, and reflecting on them would not change his actions in the future. Instead, he sorted through them, one by one, and cast them down the drain. Rushing away in a flood of hot water.

He stayed like that for some time, unconcerned about the sleep he was losing, and relaxed. It could, after all, be his last chance to do this without someone pounding on the door to ask him to hurry up. His last roommate had been like that. Until her death, anyway. Another thought to let disappear, another face he'd eventually forget. 

[Color=00ffbb][i]C'est la vie.[/I][/COLOR]

Finally satisfied, Lawrence turned off the water and began drying himself, an act he would usually do in the living room. Times change. Still he ignored the mirror, now covered in steam, and focused on the task at hand. Fatigue was finally staring to hit him in waves, an empty mind combined with boiled muscles. Any sleep he managed to get tonight would be potent, no matter how little. Hopefully his roommates kept up their quiet streak at least until after he'd woken up.

Hopefully.

After finishing Lawrence eyed his dirty clothes before slipping them back on. He had only worn them for little under an hour, after all, and he had managed to avoid soaking them in blood during the commotion earlier. They were still servicable, at the very least. That, and he really didn't want to deal with sneaking around half naked on his first night with his new roommates. Two women at that. [i]Twice[/i] as bad as his previous experience. Times were going to be interesting, if nothing else.

Sighing at the thought, he slipped his clothes back on and exited the bathroom, steam following close behind him. It looked as if Emma was still out, and Hazel was sleeping soundly. Wasting no time, he made his way over to his own bed and slipped into it, fatigue quickly evolving into pure exhaustion. He barely registed the thump of Lizzy jumping up to curl behind his legs before he slipped off into sleep.

[hr][hr][center][h2]Coffee, Exams, and a Nudist. Lawrence ponders if USARILN East is any different from your average college campus.[/h2][/center][hr][hr]

Commotion.

Lawrence ignored it, enjoying his bed for as long as possible. His alarm had yet to go off, and that meant he had at least a few more blissful moments of rest left. His muscles were still in euphoria from his shower a few hours ago, and his damp hair had failed to make him sick before it dried overnight. A perfect morning. No, he would not be-

[color=AC58FA][i]Nudge[/i][/color]

- disturbed by anything. How many chances would he get like this again after all? Once his roommates had settled in there was no doubt that he would find his rest constantly disturbed. Either by music or morning routine. One had to take life's opportunities as they presented themselves. And this morning presented the perfect one to be lazy. An opportunity he planned to take full advantage-

[color=AC58FA][i][b]Nudge[/b][/i][/color]

"[color=00ffbb]Jesus Christ.[/color]"

He muttered, hitting Lizzy with a full on glare from beneath his blankets. The dog had plenty of flaws, but impatience usually wasn't one of them. For a beast that seemed to be hungry all the time, she was usually accomodating to his morning routine. An admirable amount of restraint, all things considered. So why was today different? Was she still miffed about being shunned the night before?

His eyes though did not meet hers. She was thoroughly occupied with something else across the room, ignoring him entirely at this point. Curious, he followed her gaze until it became obvious what held her attention.

[i][color=00ffbb]Jesus Christ.[/color][/i]

And he had been worried about sneaking around half naked after his shower last night. Clearly that wouldn't be much of a concern with his current company. He gave appreciative consideration to the woman across the room from him for a moment before turning his attention back to Lizzy and scratching her behind the ears. Letting out a sigh as he did so.

"[color=00ffbb]Why do you even care? You're naked too you know.[/color]"

With that bit of dog-philosphy out of the way, Lawrence slipped out of bed and stretched, waking up his thoroughly relaxed muscles. Not sure if he was supposed to be admiring the sight in front of him, or missing it on account of being asleep, he decided to take the safer option and turn away. Still dressed in his clothes from the night before, the kitchen became his goal, calling out behind him as he started walking:

"[color=00ffbb]Not that I don't appreciate the show, but at least let me get my morning coffee in me before we get to know each other that intimately.[/color]"

Not that he was entirely unphased by the whole event, but it wasn't exactly the first naked woman he'd seen in his life. On the razor thin chance this was some sort of seduction game after his comforting charm the night before- he wasn't interested at the moment. A woman was the last thing he needed right now, let alone a strange one. It seemed that at USARILN East "strange" was the only variety they came in. No, he'd try and sort this all out after his morning brew.

Once in the kitchen, he fished out a container of dog food from beneath the sink and began filling a porcelain bowl appropriately marked "[color=AC58FA]Lizzy[/color]". The effect was immediate, as the pitter patter of paws echoed across the small apartment and the dog presented herself on no time flat. Barely waiting for Lawrence to finish filling before digging in with an almost admirable fervor. His first task completed, Lawrence then turned on his coffee maker before fishing out a couple slices of bread from a loaf sitting on his counter and popped them into his toaster. 

It wasn't long until he emerged from the kitchen into the living room once more, buttered toast in one hand and coffee in the other. A very satisfied Lizzy following closely behind him. Casually, he leaned over over Emma's should and began reading the exams she was working on, ignoring Hazel at the moment in order to put off a potentially annoying confrontation. When he was young and stupid, he too believed these tests were important. In the end though it was all rubbish. They would either die, or survive and have no potential career paths outside of what the government commanded them to do. It wasn't as if anyone gathered here had a future in the private sector, all things considered.

Still, he had taken them seriously at the time, and hadn't done too poorly. Rather, he had done exceptionally in some subject, and average-to-rubbish in others. Even before receiving his Arbiter mark he hadn't planned on becoming a mathematician though, so low marks in that subject hadn't exactly bothered him. Still, he kept these thoughts to himself, there was no purpose in shattering the new arrival's hopes of a normal future yet. Instead he took a thoughtful bite of toast, before stepping back.

"[color=00ffbb]Looks like you've got that covered pretty well, looking to get yourself on the fast track to success?[/color]"