[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/af7rrLG.png[/img][/center] Slog, sweat, shower, stretch, sleep. Rinse and repeat; a regular routine. The past fortnight had been two weeks of non-stop PT. Well, there were plenty of lectures and mana exercises too, but… If Misaiya had thought the first day had left him sore enough, all the running and jumping and lifting so far hadn’t yet rendered him bedridden only by virtue of copious amounts of willpower, adrenaline, and analgesic balms. The first obstacle course had been a tough but interesting challenge. The fifth had just been suffering. Fact is, Misaiya wasn’t particularly fit. The other four might-classified Camellians - Ankaa, Sophiel, Caelum, and Ty - were doing at least somewhat better. Physically, they all outperformed him by a decent margin. As for the meditation training — Sophiel had trouble with magic too, but her mana could still effect some sort of change, albeit uncontrolled. He had rather more extensive issues. Manipulating his mana wasn’t that difficult. He could move it around just fine, even shape it into simple patterns. Turning raw ‘mana’ into actual ‘magic’ was where he ran into a real wall. Misaiya had never so much as attempted to practise using magic, and he could only draw a little mana from an already tiny pool. It was like drinking from a tea cup with a spoon, convex side up. Spells would unfortunately still be a long ways away. Camellia was a pretty supportive class, though. Or, a decent number of his classmates were at least. Misaiya was trying his best to do his part and pay it forward whenever he could. This admittedly wasn’t often, struggling as he was. He stretched his limbs and neck and sides and back, a good half a minute each. Was that creaking and popping normal? Either way, by the end of it he felt better-prepared to face the day’s mission. It was late in the morning, but he still had a good hour or so before the appointed reporting time at noon. A quick rinse later, he was packing the ‘bare essentials’, as Nyx had instructed. Misaiya had emptied out his rucksack, leaving only his equipment, a few sets of clothes, and a whole lot of air inside. Even at his most leisurely pace, it only took a few minutes before he was all set to head on out. Misaiya would have gladly taken a passenger had any of his classmates wanted a ride — if it weren’t for the fact that his bicycle was a single-seater, and while there was a load carrier on the rear wheel… one, that was more a romantic couple thing, and secondly, it was pretty unsafe and he’d seen his fair share of cracked craniums because of people horsing around. The road is like a tiger’s mouth, after all. Better play it safe. Helmet, on. Bells, check. He was ready to roll. This was Misaiya’s first time leaving the campus since his arrival, and his first proper look at Genelogia in the daytime. The city was a metropolis in the truest sense, positively bustling and brimming with life in a way he hadn’t been able to appreciate trudging through the streets in the dead of night. Cycling all around campus had helped him in getting used to the bumpiness of cobblestone, too. He was still essentially a commuter at the moment, though, so he cut back on the sightseeing after a while. He heard his destination far before it came into sight, the shrill whistles of incoming trains and the low rumbling of rails serving as unmistakable identifying characteristics. To little surprise, it was a heavily-trafficked place. Navigating the crowds milling about the platform, even dismounted, as such proved to be quite a pain. Old ladies and little rascals alike, by the time Misaiya came across his classmates, he had narrowly avoided running over and bumping into a dozen people with his bicycle. Ty’s eye-catching orange hair had captured Misaiya’s notice first. Soon he spotted the rest - half the class had arrived already, and he was still very early. For a student who had spent years dutifully chasing after stragglers and latecomers (putting aside the incident during the opening ceremony), it was a welcome change of pace. Misaiya gave them a nod and a wave, plus a ‘ding’ of the handlebar bell in greeting. Excitement seemed to be the principal part of the present atmosphere, what with the guys all but bouncing around. Sanhan though was just standing aside, idly - well, she had always been, maybe not [i]asocial[/i] per se, but quiet for sure. She never seemed to chat or small talk, nor had she ever initiated a conversation. Was it callous apathy, or peak zen? No, it was probably just a cultural difference. Practical simplicity and plain speech were not unfamiliar concepts to Misaiya, so it was hardly a stretch to imagine that the girl from a faraway land was content to be left undisturbed. And so he did not speak to her. Ah, Caelum was here. The swordsman had stayed up pretty late last night training, but had still been the first in C-D to leave. Yet there was not a hint of tiredness on his face. Amazing, and quite the contrast with Misaiya’s everlasting barely-suppressed aching. In fact, that aching was making a resurgence right about now, with a side of lethargy. Combined with all the background noise, Misaiya didn’t really have the energy to hold a conversation. So he shifted out of the way, next to Sanhan, and leaned against his bicycle. A poster caught his eye. Sice and Pictor. The twin burglars’ pictures were now posted all over. With their useless eye-only masks, they looked like some caricature of a phantom thief, or perhaps just a regular roguish robber, given their shabby clothes. Though, with scarves like that, ‘artist’ would have been his second guess. [color=gray][i]If they use the elements, then they‘re probably earth mages.[/i][/color] The rationale was simple; they had green hair. A lot of magic users were like that, not just the elementalists. Nyx’s dark dress and arrogant airs were a good match for his shadowy spells. Kress was blue, and used water magic. And earth magic, and all the other elements, but that didn’t support his point. Kiara… well, ‘ice’ described her personality more so than her magic. If only she could swap with Mandi, whose bright yellow streak of hair brought to mind electricity, and not so much water. And as for Eris - ‘smoke and mirrors’. That had to be most befitting the oddball girl, with hair the colour of smoke (if the smoke had come from burning lavender) and mana that allegedly caused a bizarre sensation of recursive self-reflection. She was Misaiya’s roommate and all, but he still had a hard time grasping her character. Was their affinity to certain colours innate, born of the same factors that shaped the characteristics of their mana? Or were they consciously or subconsciously imitating the element they used, spurred on by cultural expectations and stereotyping? It was a nature versus nurture argument of sorts. …what a tangent of thought that had been. And to what end? Actually, speaking of hair, and looking at Sanhan beside him — Misaiya wondered what her natural hair colour was, for she had both white and black locks. And unlike Mandi, whose hair was obviously dyed yellow, Sanhan’s case was a bit ambiguous. It was curious. He was curious. That was cause enough. [color=gray]“Sanhan.”[/color] She was right beside Misaiya, so he didn’t need to speak very loudly. Just enough to be clearly audible. [color=gray]“If it’s nothing sensitive to ask — is your hair naturally black, or white?”[/color] [@OwO]