[center][color=f26522][h1]Ty Varen[/h1][/color][/center]

Ty was a bit too distracted by the train to fully process the girls' reaction to his answer. He didn't think that calling a girl cute was that big of a deal, and both Mandi and Kiara had reasonably tame reactions to being passed over in the impromptu contest. Sophiel, however, pulled his attention right back with a punch to the shoulder. It didn't particularly hurt, but there was enough force to jar his body and elicit a confused expression. Why was the girl he said was the cutest the one that was mad at him? If anything, he expected the other two to double-team him or something. [color=f26522]"But if I didn't pick one, that would be a cop-out."[/color] To Ty, backing out of a challenge, even a ridiculous one about talking to girls, was worse than any consequences that would follow. [color=f26522]"And it's not like I said anything rude. I Just said what I thought. For all I know, more guys might find Kiara cuter..."[/color]

Before he could dig his grave any deeper, though, the professor addressed the class and led them onto the train. Ty's jaw dropped at the mention of food. [color=f26522]"That thing's a restaurant too!?"[/color] He thought they would need to bring their own food and drinks along for the train ride, kind of like when people rode in a carriage. More often than not, Ty's limited wallet held him back from eating all he could. Today, apparently, that would not be the case. However, before he could take the time to appreciate the spectacle of modern technology, he was pulled aside by the professor. His blood ran cold and his limbs felt numb. His mind raced as he tried to think of what he could have done to invoke their professor's ire. He heard rumors that the man had turned someone into a frog. Frogs were pretty cool, but Ty did not want to be one forever! Was it about sleeping through history? Or maybe he saw the commotion he was causing with the girls? Honestly, he'd been too busy these past two weeks to do anything truly worthy of reprimand. But then he noticed Kiara was called aside as well. He let out a sigh of relief. It couldn't be bad if their straight-laced rep was here with him. 

[color=92278f]"Any idea why Sekhandur, Alberta, and Kress are so late?"[/color]

Ty was barely responsible enough to account for himself, let alone others. Why was the professor asking [i]him[/i] of all people where they were? He figured Alberta was just taking her sweet-ass time in the bathroom like always, though it wasn't like Kress to be late. Ty began with a big shrug. [color=f26522]"Well, Sek's always talking to ghosts and stuff. Maybe they finally got him..."[/color] Before he could continue to speculate, the trio showed up, Kress being dragged along in comedic fashion. Some of the other students had some... imaginative... ideas as to what they were doing. Ty looked at Kress, then Alberta, and then burst out laughing. Why would [i]anyone[/i] want to hook up with a girl like her. But, he straightened up when Kress asked him to vouch for them.

He'd been down this road plenty of times before. Whenever his brothers were off doing something they weren't supposed to, they always fed Ty a believable story that he'd in turn feed to their father. Perhaps due to years of fraternal conditioning, Ty reflexively agreed. [color=f26522]"Uhh, y-yeah. I was gonna tell you that they were... umm..."[/color] This time, however, he wasn't fed a convincing story. [color=f26522]"Studying so hard that they almost missed the train?"[/color] Ty concluded in an unconvincing inflection. His brothers always gave Ty the exact words to say and made him repeat them back several times before letting him go. After all, Ty was a terrible liar. [color=f26522]"But, yeah, they're here now, so it's all good. Thanks for trusting us with this mission, professor. I won't let you down!"[/color] The confidence returned to Ty's voice. He was so ready to hunt down these thieves, but more importantly, to experience the most awesome mode of transportation ever created. 

As Ty made his way into the cart to find a seat, Eris turned to him and got his attention. He noticed that she was struggling with her luggage. [color=f26522]"Wow, that's a lot of bare essentials you've got there,"[/color] he teased, letting out a quick snicker. His own bag was only half-full and fit comfortably over his shoulder. He wouldn't even need to use the upper compartments. However, he didn't let her suffer too long. He took her bag by the handle, and with one swing of his arm, hoisted it cleanly into the compartment. He was only an inch taller than the girl, but if nothing else, his training at Avalice had made him strong enough to perform such tasks with ease. [color=f26522]"There you go, 'Ris. Let me know if you need help with anything else. I could also give you some packing advice. You won't wanna be hauling something like that through the woods."[/color] With that he headed off to find a seat before all the good ones got taken. 

Sophiel was nestled in a corner, taking one of the window seats. Ty debated taking a window seat himself so he could watch the scenery fly by... but then he'd be stuck if he wanted to get up and walk around. He could still see the scenery from the aisle anyway. He did remember that Sophiel wanted to talk about some things as well, so he figured the train ride would be a good time. So, he plopped himself down next to her, setting his bag on the floor beneath his feet. [color=f26522]"So, I guess we'll have plenty of time to talk about my village and stuff if you want,"[/color] he said casually, as if the debacle of Mandi's challenge hadn't happened. [color=f26522]"It's probably not very interesting, but I guess I'm as good a person to ask about it as anyone."[/color] He leaned back and stretched his feet under the table. Nobody was sitting across from him yet, so it probably wouldn't be a problem. 

[@AThousandCurses][@KoL][@TheWendil][@ERode][@Matsuri][@Blu][@Dezuel]