Helena had been spending the last couple of minutes struggling to mop up the amorphous puddle of cereal with two napkins, fearing any greater movement to fetch more would disturb the small lake and send it over the rug that she suspected cost quite a considerable amount of money.  She had sort of hoped someone might offer some assistance, but as she was too embarrassed to actually ask, she'd resigned herself to this frustrating exercise.  

That was until Esperanza intervened.  Even though it might well have been just out of a wish to find an open seat, Helena was incredibly grateful, and gave a sheepish grin as she soaked the milk up with the new supply of napkins. Someone had had sufficient concern to help her out, and was sufficiently friendly to offer greeting. 

[color=f6989d]
"Thank you so much... I wasn't sure how I was going to.. Oh! I'm Helena. Helena Kingsley. My friends call me Hel."[/color]

Or rather they would, if she had friends aside from her younger brother, members of a Labyrinth fan forum, and stuffed toy rabbit she occasionally relayed her problems to.
[@EchoicChamber]

[hr]

Hilda Norrevinter, the woman stood with the scandinavian group, turned from her niece in order to catch sight of Professor Byrne, and returned with a smile that probably could be considered convincing. 
[color=f7976a]"Maeve, you look well! 
Kora, this is Maeve Byrne, she was a ...colleague of mine and of your father's, during the war."[/color]

The pause in the statement was apparently lost on the tall, ginger-haired teenager, who extended her hand to shake Maeve's in a way that had probably sprained some wrists in the past. Being as she had a set of headphones hung round her neck that were still issuing the quite background-noise of someone scream-growling in norwegian it was probably not totally her own fault.
[color=f26522]"You teach combat right? I can't wait. "[/color]

With the bags sat at her feet was a large leather scabbard, a hilt and crossguard of a large, roughly-hewn sword visible. There was also a decorated bear skull, a bag of runes, and a small wood box filled with aesir idols carved out of volcanic rock.  Kora was apparently well-prepared.[@ScoundrelQueen]



[hr]

Oren paced around the room beside the door like a puma in a duster, occasionally checking her phone for a look at the time. 
The arrival of Ray Matheos warranted a nod from the woman, but also the look of disapproving contempt that people tended to gain when Oren knew they;d fallen down in something. 

She wasn't going to berate another staff member in front of the new intake. If they didn't present a united front to begin, the brats would take any opportunity to capitalize on that. However the look alone seemed like it could probably petrify small mammals, so that was possibly enough.