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The stables were quiet for the most part. In order to avoid a horde of hungry animals seeking out dinner at the same time the students did, a few were tasked with filling the troughs at the same time the cafeteria would start serving. While there were assigned tasks and the students were more likely to get to it once they were assigned, the stablemaster dedicated himself to doing it for the first few days himself.

Isolde at the moment had decided to wander in mostly out of curiosity, but ended up staying after being spooked by the bell. Being around people had been hard enough and there weren’t too many places to hide, but at the very least she could admire the pegasi up close without too much worry. She wished she was brave enough to offer to brush one, but even they were a little intimidating.

And so she put herself to work, carrying the large buckets to where the thirsty horses waited. It was a little hard without getting water everywhere, but she managed to get the first one poured into the empty trough without incident. Of course, she was a little discouraged when she realized it hadn’t even come close to filling. She had been naive--multiple trips to the well were needed. 

With that in mind, she made sure to grab two buckets. Double the buckets, double the water! Isolde stepped out of the stable, determined.

Just beyond the stable gates, along the dirt path that led to the well, Imogen sat cross-legged, waving to get Isolde's attention. In truth, she had been waiting outside the stables for a while, at first with the intention of jumping out to surprise her fellow deer. But then she remembered that this was [i]Iz[/i], who just earlier today had looked close to passing out from simply having to introduce herself. Imogen didn't quite like the thought of accidentally scaring someone to death, so she quickly repositioned herself in the most non-threatening way she could think of and waited patiently instead. Caius had taught her long ago how to approach the wild bunnies that roamed the mountains and she figured the same idea would work on Iz.

[color=ffb5c2]"Need some help?"[/color] Imogen asked, as soon as she was certain Isolde had seen her. She hopped up and dusted herself off, rushing to take one of the buckets from her without waiting for a response. [color=ffb5c2]"So I'm hiding from this weird lady who wouldn't stop asking about Jory and Rai-Rai. Much rather be eating now, though! How come you're here by yourself?"[/color]

Isolde was a little surprised to see Imogen, albeit she didn't run. Well, she wanted to, but she had her task at hand. The bucket was taken from her before she could protest, but she supposed that helping the horses get water wasn't a [i]bad[/i] thing. She ended up leading Imogen to the well, figuring that she wasn’t going to leave.

 [color=lemonchiffon]"I don't know,"[/color] She mumbled, tying up her bucket before letting it drop some and turning the handle to lower it.  [color=lemonchiffon]"I was just looking around, and the stablemaster looked like he needed help, so...here I am."[/color]

Imogen, who had her bucket swinging around her arms as she followed along, stopped abruptly and with a scandalized gasp. There was a strange itching sensation in her nose for a moment, like she was on the verge of sneezing but it didn't want to come out just yet, that was almost immediately replaced by the stinging sensation of the bucket crashing against her chin. She took it all in stride, more concerned with the matter at hand.

[color=ffb5c2]"Iz, you're not being taken advantage of, are you?!"[/color] She imagined poor Iz minding her own business, hungry and on her way to the deer party, when the lazy stablemaster spotted her and demanded she do his job. Iz tried to say 'no,' but her voice was too quiet so the stablemaster ignored her. How awful! [color=ffb5c2]"If you need help telling people off, just let me know, 'kay? I'm pretty good at that."[/color]

Imogen waited for her turn with the well and ended up needing two turns lowering and raising her bucket. She spilled half the water on her first go because she had cranked the lever too fast. As soon as they were set, she led the way back, being more mindful of her task this time. 

Imogen’s imagination was very, very curious. Still, it wasn’t like Isolde could blame her entirely. Getting roped into things wasn’t exactly strange to her--often her lack of a response was somehow considered an agreement to some people. She supposed Imogen’s words were meant to be comforting, but it was a little distressing to hear someone figure her out so quickly. Maybe she should try adjusting herself.

[color=lemonchiffon]“No, I did it because I had the time,”[/color] She shrugged a little.  [color=lemonchiffon]“I wasn’t feeling very social.”[/color]

[color=ffb5c2]"I get that! Caius—he's basically my dad, by the way—says 'I don't feel like talking right now' when he wants some alone time."[/color] Imogen laughed fondly, remembering just how often he used that line to the other villagers. Rarely to her, she thought proudly. [color=ffb5c2]"I'm the opposite: I get lonely when there's no one to talk to."[/color] Despite the more somber sentiment, Imogen marched happily along, keeping Isolde's steady pace. 

She liked getting to know people and seeing how they were like, and after spending a loud afternoon with Jory, Isolde's timidness stood out like a sore thumb. Imogen wondered if she preferred the quiet, like Caius did, or if it was just something she got used to. There was a difference there, she thought. 

[color=ffb5c2]"Hey, so, what do you think of our classmates so far? Wanna rank them by who seems scariest?"[/color] she asked after a moment, hoping to make Isolde more comfortable with some playful banter. Then she switched gears, as if only remembering what they were just talking about. [color=ffb5c2]"Oh wait—are you feeling social enough to talk to me?"[/color]

[color=lemonchiffon]“Huh?”[/color] The last question had thrown Isolde off guard, blinking slowly as she tried to figure out what she meant by that. Then again, she felt like she needed a minute or two just to try to process the whole conversation. The girl had a lot of energy for sure, but it wasn’t bad. Just took a little getting used to.

Still, Isolde ended up shaking her head. [color=lemonchiffon]“Ah, no, don’t mind me. I just…”[/color] She trailed off, trying to find the words. [color=lemonchiffon]“I’m in a precarious position these days, that’s all. It’s hard when everyone knows you’re the Alliance’s failure.”[/color]

Imogen nodded once, trying to be understanding, but then tilted her head in confusion as she processed what Isolde had said. Alliance’s failure? To say her knowledge about the goings-on of the nation is limited was beyond an understatement. Back home, all she really cared about was the safety of her village. She’d mostly succeeded in ignoring her mom and her desperate claims about her supposed birthright, and that was as close to the politics as got.

[color=ffb5c2]“I don’t know what that means, but if you’re in danger, I’ll have your back!”[/color]

Isolde wasn’t too sure what to think of that, but at least the sentiment was appreciated. She did give the other girl a small smile, stopping in front of the trough and carefully pouring in the water. Stepping back as a majority of the animals trotted over, she let out a sigh of relief as she realized they were much more interested in having a drink and not at all with her.

[color=lemonchiffon]“It mostly means being the source of gossip, but there are some implications,”[/color] She frowned, giving her another shrug. [color=lemonchiffon]“But I guess it isn’t worth talking about anymore. I’d rather distance myself from my father as best as I can. I hoped coming here would be a new start, but I’m not so sure anymore.”[/color]

Imogen followed suit, emptying her bucket into the trough. She reached out to give one of the smaller animals the dawdled by a pet before turning back to Isolde. [color=ffb5c2]"Gossip is for bored people with nothing better to do. You shouldn't mind them,"[/color] she said, hoping to reassure her, although she still didn't really grasp her situation. [color=ffb5c2]"Now, distancing from fathers – that I totally understand! I'm lucky I have Caius because from what I've heard, my dad ain't the best guy around."[/color]

Her stomach rumbled then and that was her cue to start heading back. She should get some food before they stop serving it! [color=ffb5c2]"Wanna get something to eat? Think the dining hall isn't so crowded anymore."[/color] Imogen didn't want to push too hard, but it would be nice to have that meal with a friend she had set out to have earlier that evening. 

[color=ffb5c2]"By the way, I don't think it's over for you just yet,"[/color] Imogen grinned. [color=ffb5c2]"Every day's a new start, isn't it? You have plenty of chances!"[/color]

Isolde seemed to disagree, but she nodded politely, giving Imogen a small smile. At least she seemed genuine! [color=lemonchiffon]"Um, sure,"[/color] She ended up agreeing, even if she wasn’t too hungry, she could return the favor by keeping her company.
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Ever adaptable, Imogen found it easy to establish a new normal in the monastery. Sure, she burst out crying when a wave of homesickness struck her, but that also happened when she camped up in Fódlan’s Throat for three days, so that wasn’t anything new. Her room was still too big and too lonely, even more so after the switch, so she made it a point to spend as little time in there as possible. 

In the mornings she ran. Partly because she loved everything about it: the cool morning breeze tussling her hair, the early sunlight warm on her skin; she greeted the fresh day with unbridled enthusiasm, always. But mostly, she ran because otherwise, she would be bursting with restless energy for the remainder of the day and it would be those around her that would suffer for it. Throughout the day, classes took up most of her time and she was happily surrounded by her classmates. At night, she'd find someone to keep her company and it was only after they go back to their own rooms that she would relent and return to her empty one as well.

Now having to actually be in class was more difficult than she realized. Imogen was so used to skipping lessons back at home that she had to retrain herself to stay in the room until class was over. History classes proved to be the most challenging, and as of now, she has yet to remain awake for the duration of the class. She’s trying hard, though! The more hands-on ones weren’t too much of a problem. Aside from the occasional slip into her daydreams, learning about weapons and strategy kept her engaged.

Today's outing was currently one of her favorites things to happen so far. It was almost up there with the night of Rai-Rai’s party! Idly, Imogen wondered why he didn’t join them on their field trip, but didn’t dwell on it for too long. She figured he had a lot of fancy noble business parties to attend. 

Probably better for him, too. While she didn’t have any issues with their cramped carriage--being small had its perks! She never needed a lot of space to be comfortable--everyone else seemed less enthused. Poor Lin over there by the corner looked like she was ready to hurl, and she felt bad that she was kinda curious to see what would happen if she did end up puking all over Mr. Holy Aubie.

Imogen wondered if she really was the only one having fun. She supposed it also helped that she was lucky enough to get squished into the window seat. During the first portion of the trip, she had excitedly stuck her head out the window and took in the view. She got tired after a while and knocked out, falling asleep on Kel’s shoulder for some time. There was a chance that she had accidentally kicked Der at some point as well; it was a habit she’d had since she was a child that she had yet to outgrow.

She woke up with a start to Kel’s rushed exit off the carriage. There was split second of disorientation as she allowed the last vestige of sleep to ebb away, and then rising alarm as she echoed Kel’s urgency. [color=ffb5c2]“Ahh, are we under attack?”[/color] Imogen all but shot herself out of the carriage, raising her fists defensively as soon as she landed, eyes darting everywhere in search of the threat. She made sure to stand by Kel just in case he needed protection.

Instead of a horde of bad guys surrounding them, there were only two riders in the distance. They were heading straight towards their group, though not in a menacing way a bad guy would. Imogen decided that was enough to discount them as threats... at least for now.

Beside her, Kel had quietly called for them to be armed and Aubie seemed to agree. Lin had the same idea as her, at least so far as in she didn't think they were a threat either. [color=ffb5c2]“They kinda look like they’re running away from something.”[/color] Imogen thought out loud, relaxing from her defensive stance. [color=ffb5c2]“Oh! They might need help! Let’s go!”[/color]

Imogen sprinted forward, though not too far from where the teachers gathered. She waved her hands to get the riders’ attention, even if they were probably still too far to have heard. [color=ffb5c2]“Hellloooo! Are you guys okay?”[/color]