Despite his best efforts to mask how uncomfortable he was, Toma wasn't skilled enough to hide it. That was probably to be expected - he wasn't really sure how to act when he was near so many people for the first time, and while he was far from an introvert, it would probably take a while before he could avoid feeling claustrophobic in such a large crowd.

Toma jumped slightly when another student sat in the chair next to him, suprised.

[color=gold]"Hello. My name is Alexis. I could taste your fear from across the room. Mind kicking it up a notch? My favorite flavor is abject terror."[/color]

Toma felt a little disturbed thanks to her choice of words, but she was smiling and her voice was amiable. Maybe it was a city thing to talk about tasting fear, or it was some kind of joke...

Eventually, he relented and began to relax. Even if she was a little eccentric, she was willing to initiate a conversation with him - Storalla knows that he probably wouldn't have worked up the courage to talk to another student during the feast. 

[color=a36209]"I'm sorry to disappoint, but I am not very good at being scared on command..."[/color]

Toma stopped talking for several seconds until he realized that he hadn't introduced himself yet and had pretty much shut down any conversation from happening.

[color=a36209]"Oh, um, my name is Toma - it is a pleasure to meet you, Alexis."[/color]

Toma wasn't exactly sure what the people at Hoseforn would be like, especially since the only people his age that he knew left Whitelot years before for various apprenticeships, but he felt Alexis was pretty tolerable. Wait, that sounded kind of harsh... Toma really didn't know anything about her other than how she looked, so he was struggling to form an opinion on her. Alexis' white hair and red eyes made Toma think that she was some kind of nonhuman, but other than that she looked like a normal person - maybe she was an elf, or a human that really doesn't go outside, like, ever.

Really, even if she was an Orc, Toma was just glad that he could finally talk to someone his age.

[color=a36209]"How are you enjoying things at the academy so far? I only arrived an hour or two ago, and the stables here could easily fit all the livestock from my hometown. That's not even mentioning the water-dispensing contraption in our rooms - that's probably worth more than the rest of my village put together!"[/color]

Small talk - his mother had told Toma before he left that the best way to get better at talking with people... was by talking with people. 

The room was mostly full at this point, with the table the pair were sitting at being one of the least populated. Toma was honestly a little glad for that - there were hundreds of people within the hall and having a table that was relatively unfilled made him feel less crowded.

The lights began to dim, and Toma turned to look at the part of the hall that remained lit. An empty table was slowly being filled with people, presumably the head staff of the school. Toma was a little uncomfortable with the presence of the Goblin and Drow (Toma never heard of a goblin smart enough to be a teacher, but considering his own illiteracy, he didn't feel right to pass too much judgment), but only became concerned when a woman with the lower half of a snake literally slithered into view. 

Toma knew that he would struggle with interacting with nonhumans - he had only ever seen a few Elves and a Dwarf before, with the rest of his knowledge on other races coming from stories he heard by older adults... And most of those stories usually started with Orcs eating people or Sirens singing men to their graves. But this lady [i]actually looked like a monster[/i] - he might mistake a Siren or an Orc for a human if it was dark, but no one would think that a person that was half snake was a human. If she was a student, Toma felt he could probably just keep his distance and try not to talk too much with her. But she was a teacher - what could he do? Sit in the back of her classes and pray that she gets full from eating the other students first?

Toma didn't seem to realize how ridiculous it was to think a teacher at a famous academy would devour a student.

As Ms. Rickter spoke, Toma only grew more uncomfortable. He was still nervous about her being a Naga - a lifetime of prejudice wouldn't be erased with a short speech. However, this was dwarfed by how ashamed Toma felt. She didn't speak like a monster, and when she was talking about the rules, Toma found them to be quite reasonable. If someone had stolen from him, he would definitely want them to be punished (Though he'd prefer to kick their ass rather than have them be expelled from such a nice school...) - it only made sense that she would have felt the same way, if he had said something about her appearance.

When she spoke about classes, Toma desperately hoped that he would not be placed into any that Ms. Rickter instructed - if he felt this ashamed just from judging the woman too quickly, he couldn't imagine how bad he'd feel if he did something to offend her. 

Toma was shocked again as food seemingly materialized on the table, but he was beginning to grow less surprised as his day went on. Not that things were becoming less fantastical - but after so many impossible events in a row and a week since his last hot meal, Toma really didn't have the energy to be shocked at his ignorance of magic. Instead, he reached for the pitcher of wine and began to fill his cup, before grabbing the roasted leg of some bird he couldn't identify.

[color=a36209]"Our Teachers seen quite... Unique, don't you think? I didn't expect Mr. Hoseforn to be so brief."[/color]

Toma ate voraciously, finding the food to be far tastier than anything he had back in Whitelot. The young man had never even had salt before, let alone the more exotic seasonings and spices that covered the food. Despite the small town's proximity to a coastal trade city like Windlton, Whitelot lacked the funds necessary to buy luxury items like spices. Soon the feelings of shame at his racism began to fade, instead being replaced by curiosity. 

Tarkus, the paladin who had applied Toma to Hoseforn, didn't seem very rich. He was an accomplished adventurer or at least claimed to be, but he settled down in a backwater town with only a single magic item to his name. Did the man just save every gold piece he ever received and used that to pay for Toma's admission? Toma couldn't imagine the Paladin doing that, even if they did have a good relationship, but what other explanation was there? Even if Toma knew what a scholarship was, he would doubt that someone illiterate like he was could receive one.

The hall had seemed to erupt in conversation after the food appeared, students eager to talk with one another and make friends. A few students, seemingly uninterested in the food, were already leaving. As he finished his second glass of wine, Toma paused and reached for the pitcher of water. Classes were starting tomorrow, and while he wouldn't be surprised if Hoseforn Academy had some magical hangover cure, Toma really didn't want to risk a blinding headache on his first day. 

Toma also grabbed several apples and carrots, placing them into his pack for later. Oats, like his name suggests, favored cereal and grains more than fruits and vegetables... But Toma really doubted that the donkey would complain about a free meal. Remembering that girls were usually fond of animals, Toma spoke up again.

[color=a36209]"Did you have any pets back home, Alexis? I used to live on a farm, so I had quite a few. I wish I could have brought my favorite hen, Mouse, with me..."[/color]

Toma had left the Chicken back on his family farm, after realizing that it did more work than the Donkey. Like Oats, she was named after her favorite food - She was an even better mouser than the neighbor's cat.

Toma had eaten quite a bit of food in a short span of time - he had several older siblings when he was growing up, so he had to eat quickly if he wanted to get enough. He still picked up various pieces of exotic fruits and strange meats and snacked on them, but that was mostly out of curiosity rather than hunger. He'd probably take some of the various loaves of bread with him for later, if he decided to copy some of the more asocial students that had already left the feast.

[@Ryik]