[center][h2][color=darkorange]Ryder Drake[/color][/h2][/center][hr]
It had taken Ryder some time of tossing and turning before sleep finally welcomed him that evening, so the sudden wake-up call wasn't exactly a pleasant surprise as he jolted awake. However, he only allowed himself a fleeting moment of annoyance and a single displeased grumble before prying himself up from his bed. Grabbing a collection of clothes from a chair where he had neatly folded them not too long ago, Ryder let his minder wander to the possible reasons for such a summon as he proceeded to quickly dress himself on autopilot. A mix of excitement, nerves, and dread coiled in his gut as he thought back on the mission application he had sent in. If that's what this is related to, then, well...

[color=darkorange][i]Focus.[/i][/color]

Ryder cleared his throat, the sound piercing the quiet small space as he pulled on a jacket over his grey sleeveless shirt and brushed off a speck of dust or dirt that may or may not be truly there off one sleeve. Stopping to glance at himself in a mirror, he smoothed the few wrinkles from the front of his simple black pants even though it was mostly futile and straightened up the hem of his jacket. The core of his outfits tended to be dominated by practicality for a good tumbling around, accompanied with something discardable to keep him warm, but not too warm, and give him a semblance of formality. It was good enough for this sudden meeting as well. He'd be good to go if it wasn't for the persistent fog of sleep trying to cling to his mind. But for that, he had a remedy.

Running through the familiar calculations in his head, he placed a hex to boost his alertness on himself, forgoing a magic circle. He doubted he'd be needing that bit of wasted mana from the direct cast that night and he regretted nothing. This way he'd be ready to face whatever the masters had to throw at him without spending time guzzling down pots of coffee. So he had better not waste that saved time dillydallying around. Into his boots his feet went and he was out the door, jogging down the hall to make up for the time spent getting dressed.

Before entering the room, Ryder hurriedly ran his fingers through his hair to smooth it back and fix it in place the best he was able to without proper tools. Stepping onto the other side of the door, he acknowledged the masters with a bow before straightening his back, keeping his arms tucked behind himself as he awaited further instructions. Although, he did give the other apparently summoned students a glance from the corner of his eye, finding himself raising an eyebrow at the blue otter in one of the girls' grasp. From the looks of it, she had just grabbed whatever was within reach on her way out of her room, her beast included. He couldn't say he knew her or the other girl already present, which wasn't particularly surprising. But if he were to have anything to do with them in the near future as a result of this sudden meeting, he'd have to get to know them on a basic level at least. He furrowed his brows at that notion, redirecting his focus on the masters instead.

Getting to know people was [i]dangerous[/i].