[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/TjytTdM.png[/img][/center]

Emma was still in the throes of sleep when she was rudely shaken awake. She was prepared to turn around and exchange a few choice words with her would be rouser until she realized it was one of the guards, not a roommate. She let out a heavy sigh as she rose from bed, [color=8A3DFF]"We're not going to have to go out and fight, right?"[/color] The guard shoved her along, [color=f7976a]"Doesn't matter. You're needed soon, so you better hurry up and take a shower."[/color]

At least she got to shower. 

After a very brief wash and very little time to prepare Emma let herself be whisked away to a plain... classroom? Emma had been awaken at a time she would consider far too early, especially considering her lacking sleep schedule and then herded into a room which no doubt would hold something horrible for her.

This, of course, made her a very pissed off Aberration.

That was until she was greeted by a teacher upon entering the room. A [i]teacher[/i], she had realized. Instantly, it seemed, Emma's demeanor had changed. [color=8A3DFF][i]Yes! Fighting monsters isn't really up my alley, but this I can do![/i][/color] Emma indeed might have been the only on excited by the prospect of going to school, but that didn't change the fact that she absolutely reveled in it. While it seemed to her that Marcus had been born to be a smartass or Lawrence was born to be a therapist [i]she[/i] was born to be popular.

Sure, that might sound a little vain, but really that was all she had. It was what she was good at- socializing, studying, doing homework, partying- it came naturally to her. Of course the game changed a little when she gained superpowers and ended up in a world that was fucked up beyond belief, but still, she brightened at the prospect of at the very least a semblance of normalcy. She realized that her classmates would likely be the people that she had came in with and fought with. She was excited at the chance to make a first impression with everyone, although a little disappointed when she looked down at her attire. Plain, boring. If she had realized it would be her first day of school she would've dressed to the nines but that... well, probably only mattered to her. 

[color=8A3DFF]"Hi! I'm Emma, but I'm sure you already know that!"[/color] She greeted the teachers, giddiness in her voice evident. 

She was enjoying this far too much. And she was the first to get there too! She practically danced to the desk she had picked, which of course was in the front of the class.

She seemed so peppy that it was almost comical.

She glanced around the room. She wondered who would sit next to her. Seating might very possibly be the most important thing that would happen today. Deciding where to sit- it was a very tactical game. Of course proximity would determine who you'd get to know most, so sitting next to an intriguing stranger might seem like an exciting prospect, but sitting away from a friend could be seen as a slight. When you had as many friends as she had it created quite the dilemma, as people were prone to see it as playing favorites, and Emma, of course, didn't like to pick favorites from among her friends. That made it all the more interesting that she would get to sit here and watch the game unfold.

Of course Emma overthought the matter, evaluating who she would've like to sit next to.

Of course there was Hazel, who insofar had been her best friend. They'd gone out together and Emma at the very least felt like they had bonded as roommate, but... Hazel was also Hazel, and more than likely wouldn't care in the least where Emma sat. She would probably have to explain the complexities of what would seem to be such a simple interaction to all but her, she realized.

Lawrence, of course, was a similar situation. He didn't care about something as petty as seating, at least that was what she had thought after there short time together... although Emma also would like to get to know him better. He seemed nice and also very reliable... but she had also felt super awkward about their conversation last night.

There was also Marcus. He was enticing. Funny, mysterious, and kind of cute. Scars, of course, make a man mysterious! [color=8A3DFF][i]And we have a date! Well... kind of a date![/i][/color] But would that be coming on too strong? She didn't want him to feel like he was being... well, stalked by her. Forced to sit next to her? Surely an awful fate, she decided.

Brent was another option. If she was being completely honest with herself she'd admit that the only reason she had even thought about him was because he was a complete hunk. He was almost [i]too[/i] perfect. And he was also kind of an ass. [i][color=8A3DFF]He basically told me to kill myself... but given everything going on can I really fault him?[/color][/i]

Emma also glanced at Kusari. Kusari... well, she was abrasive, to say the least, and she wasn't exactly sure what to think about her after the whole situation with Callan. Emma did get the impression that there was a little more to her than gloom and cynicism, but... 

Speaking of Callan, she was another option! Emma didn't really have much of an opinion about her since she hadn't talked with her much, but she seemed cool enough. And her hair was cool. And she wore cool shirts.

There was also Lily and Grant, who she had seen at the battle, and her own teammates Sander and Christmas. She didn't have much to go off of when it came to them, since the battle seemed a poor metric of personality. Everyone kind of lost their shit, and she could hardly blame them for whatever happened. There was also the number of people who she hadn't met yet or had only met in passing.

Was she really [i]this[/i] into it?

[hr]

Eventually everyone filed in and the teachers began talking. [i][b][color=8A3DFF]That's Fredric!?[/color][/b][/i] She practically yelled internally. She had so quickly dismissed him as a goon when Sarah told her about them, but... but... him and Daisy....

[color=8A3DFF][i]They're so nice! And absolutely [b]adorable![/b][/i][/color]

It was almost impossible to think that USARILN staff could be so peppy and cheerful, even genuinely kind. So far they seemed like the coolest teachers Emma had ever had, which made it all the odder that they worked at a hellhole like this. There was a second of doubt. Was this some kind of trap? Were they just acting nice to get their trust?

Emma shook her head. She couldn't this place ruin her faith in people, could she? Her stigma disagreed. Was it her stigma, or her? She still wasn't sure. 

While she was thinking things over they began handing out the requisition items. She was only brought out of her own head by a thud on her desk. It was a backpack filled with makeup and beauty supplies, and it came with all her snacks! [color=8A3DFF][i]Damn, I didn't actually expect them to go this far...[/i][/color] She could just imagine some disgruntled guard out buying her beauty supplies and she loved it. She was surprised at the quality of everything that they had given her, [color=8A3DFF][I]This... this is actually good shit! [b]Score![/b][/i][/color] Suddenly she had been filled with doubt. Was USARILN really the prison she had thought it was? Was Zhang so evil? Daisy and Fred had seemed so nice, and... she'd seen horrible things here. More horrible than she could've imagined. 

As she was thinking she realized that the pair were gone, and class had begun. [color=8A3DFF][i]This is way too much...[/i][/color] She realized that she didn't even thank Daisy and Fredric as she walked away, and for that she felt awful.

[hr]

Soon enough it was over. She'd opted for self study, since everything was so... basic. It seemed that the effort she put into her test had gone to waste, as they had just lumped them all together. As Fredric signaled for them to leave she sighed to herself. Him and Daisy had been so cool but everything else was so dry. She had though that they were her teachers and not the talking heads they had gotten. Self study, of course, was an extra sort of boring. Diving through books with absolutely no guidance didn't really help her much. At least she had lunch! Lunch was one of the most important times to cultivate schoolyard relationships, Emma had decided to herself. Deciding where to sit was an exciting prospect! Eating together was an important bonding experience, and of course she would have plenty of time to talk to everyone! She practically shot up from her desk, beginning to weigh the pros and cons of lunch seating.