Pate turned a few corners, finishing his bread. He'd become hopelessly lost on his way to the barracks. He had never been good at pathfinding, or asking for directions. He had exited the small maze of alleyways to resume passage on the main street again, and he immediately wished he hadn't. The people surged like a current, pulling and tugging at those who refused to move. He had shortly given in and followed the hot and crowded flow to its end, spending less energy in those fifteen minutes than he had the five minutes he was trying to walk upstream.

He took a moment to gather himself. Crowds like that did not mix with him, they were too hurried. Never allowing themselves to stop and look. Books and swords are more his speed...

The crowd had let him out by the gates, where he saw an unexpected, but welcome pair of faces. Fleuri and Lillianna, standing and talking across the street from him. They seemed to be talking, so he walked over and hovered a brief moment, smiled a quick [color=21E6D3]"Hello"[/color], and waited for them to resume conversation. He hoped to not seem rude, but who knows. These things are always a gamble.