[center][h1][color=#B0C4DE]S p i r e   S c h i p p e r s[/color][/h1][/center]

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Spire's lips curved into a smile as he looked around, amused, for whoever had made the peanut gallery comment. He found him. Another face he vaguely remembered. Something with a negative connotation. Santora? Or the Lucshen, maybe? Nothing he'd had a personal connection to, so he hadn't made much note.

[color=#B0C4DE]"You're right. And I'm guessing their families would want them to respect their generous donation, smartass,"[/color] he said, chuckling. 

The Sterling kid's response was expected. Little sycophant, putting on an aquamancy show and offering the handshake to Kora that Spire had said he didn't care happened.

The Norrevinter's response, however, was not. In fact, Spire frowned at her for a second, puzzled. That was mild, if her reaction to the Sterling kid said anything about her temper. Either she didn't recognize him, she had a surprising respect for his post as a teacher, or...Hilda had deliberately withheld information, and kept her from the rumors.

Interesting.

Professor Grayson's interruption brought him out of his brief reverie. He groaned under his breath, rolling his eyes, and grabbed Grayson's arm, leading him as far out of earshot of any students as he could before he explained with as much patience as he could manage. [color=#B0C4DE]"If by small things, you mean students, what they are is already a massive pain. I'm Spire Schippers, I'm a last minute stand in for the terramancy professor position. Which is also what you're doing here, if you'll recall, only it wasn't last minute for you and you're not a terramancer, so here's hoping you've had enough lucid moments to come up with some lesson plans. The term's starting. Nice to see you out of your office."[/color]

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[center][h1][color=#DA70D6] T a t i a   F a l e[/color][/h1][/center]

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Tatia started slightly at Apple's scream, but composed herself as quickly as she could manage. She cracked another wry smile at the talk of magical food fights. [color=#DA70D6]"Tell you what. If we don't get to witness a real magical food fight by the end of the year, I'll start one with you guys on the last day," [/color] she said. [color=#DA70D6]"I'm sure I can make enough enemies by then to find someone who deserves to have some of this ... truly, bizarrely, exceptionally awesome food in their hair,"[/color] she said, almost trailing off at the end there. Somehow it would have sounded more of a punishment if this was run of the mill cafeteria food instead of whatever this ambrosia was that some damn house elves must be making in the kitchens.

[color=#DA70D6]"I'm an aeromancer,"[/color] she said, glad she remembered the correct term since she usually thought of it as just windy-powers in her head. Somehow the idea of necromancy and runic magic shifted her perspective. Controlling wind, water, fire, earth, levitating things all seemed somehow more manageable in her mind, like super power stuff that she could easily set against the urban/suburban world she knew. Necromancy and runic magic. That, and "blood magic," which she'd spotted on the list of possible secondaries to choose from, made it all seem inescapably...arcane.

But Mitch and Nolan didn't seem arcane, or even that weird.
Other than the cockroach guide dog.
That was weird.

What she said out loud was, [color=#DA70D6]"So do you full on Frankenstein it or is it a bit more subtle than that?"[/color] she asked, hoping the question didn't betray too much ignorance. [color=#DA70D6]"And runes - how does that work? Do you just get to kind of jack-of-all-trades it but you have to say the rune, or write them, or...."[/color] Okay that one definitely betrayed some ignorance.

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[center][h1][color=#E6E6FA] T o b y   S c h i p p e r s[/color][/h1][/center]

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When he didn't get a verbal response from the girl, Toby fiddled awkwardly. Was she mute? Or just quiet? Or just really pissed at him? She nodded. He thought that might have been a thank you. [color=#E6E6FA]"You're, uh..."[/color] he started, but didn't say "welcome" in case he was wrong, and just nodded back, still red to his ears. Her yellow eyes made him squirm. Confusing social situations were his worst nightmare. He already knew his stutter was going to be out of control all day.

Toby wanted to shrink a little as he saw Spire breaking up the fight. It wasn't that he was ashamed of his brother. They were close. He was sort of glad that Spire was here. It was just ... he didn't want to have to go there or talk about [i]that[/i] with anybody yet. He knew he didn't need to worry. It wasn't like Spire was going to have the bad tact to come over and throw his arm around him and call him little bro and announce it to the world.

Fortunately, Caius didn't seem to notice that Spire was, well, Spire Schippers, and just seemed glad that an adult was intervening, so Toby wouldn't even have to navigate any gossip about him at that moment. If the gas mask girl noticed, she sure didn't seem to be very chatty about it. He felt his shoulders relaxing. Vaius. He hadn't been swimming in magical society much lately, but he knew the name. A respectable family. Healers. Defenders. Good people.

[color=#E6E6FA]"I'm Toby Schippers,"[/color] he said, giving his last name even though he didn't want to, because he remembered his mother telling him it was shockingly impolite in magical society not to give your last name if the other person did so first. He liked how Caius said "defense major," like this was just college. It normalized the whole affair. [color=#E6E6FA]"I'm a runecaster," [/color] he said.

He tried to turn his body to include the mute girl in the conversation. Though he wasn't sure she wanted to be included. Maybe she could talk, and just didn't want to talk to him. He could not read her. And it stressed him out. Caius was easier. His fear about the guy hating him off the bat had dissolved.

[color=#E6E6FA]"Have you t--two picked your secondaries?" [/color] he asked, hoping to find something in common.