[center][h2]Wine, Philosophy, and Shenanigans[/h2][/center][hr][center][i]A few hours before [@SilverPaw]'s late night reflection.[/i][/center][hr]
Zeno Afraval could not contain her laughter at Onarr's 'enthusiastic' statement. Had she been presently drinking, she surely would've snorted wine from her nose. She wasn't alone in her mirth either. Anesin and Penny both wore sizable smirks. The latter lolled about on a sofa, clearly the lightweight of the group.

"Your voice fairly radiates enthusiasm, Onarr." She let her mischeivous smirk go after a moment, however, and schooled her features. "Tell me, what is it that I can help you with? Sadly, you are bound to two standard magics and four electives." She shrugged. "If I were making the rules around here, I'd change things but, sadly, that isn't the case."  She crossed her legs. "You guys are my first cohort and all of the old greyhairs see me as little more than an upjumped tan-zeno, I'm afraid." She stifled a hiccup and focused for a moment, seizing upon a certain familiar set of chemical reactions taking place within her body and stifling them. "Apologies. I'm rather a bit chatty at the moment. Regardless, if you'd like some help choosing, then that's what I'm here for." She blinked and regarded the others. "The same offer applies to you ladies as well."

“I’m just rather…” Onarr struggled to get the words out. “…overwhelmed by my choices. I feel like I know what the most obvious paths for me to choose are but I can’t help but feel as though I’m trapped by this freedom. Back in the Joru Stresian Guild I used to focus singlehandedly on the sciences and the five magics.” 

“I came to Ersand’Enise to know more than what I’ve learnt in the guild, but am I limiting my own choices by deliberately choosing subjects that I am most comfortable with or should I expand my horizons?,” Onarr paused before looking at Sienna directly. “What would you do if you were trying to be the best magician you could be?” 

The Joruban’s voice had turned slightly sombre and the cone on his helmet tipped forward loosely. His hand wandered over to tighten the strap. Five years spent learning Stresian academics hadn’t helped his brother, no matter how many manuscripts and papers that he crawled through. Conjecture and meaningless theories hadn’t got him anywhere. Perhaps, looking in another avenue of direction would help. 

Sienna nodded along as Onarr spoke, pausing pensively before replying. "More than anything else," she began, "I would choose subjects that interest me: whether they're new to me or familiar." Her brow furrowed for a moment and a tumbler and wineglass floated her way. "We don't learn out of obligation, Onarr. We don't learn out of duty." Her eyes took in all four of her apprentices for a moment. "Certainly, we can falsify it, I think. We can spit answers back onto a page to be graded or we can redirect some force into a stone to push it along, but you won't remember a word of what you 'learned' in a year, and you'll have plenty of opportunity to live for obligation and duty when you're older." She paused for a moment, and the shadow of something may have flickered across her features. "Don't choose the path that you feel you should walk; choose the one that excites you to walk." She had been swirling her wine around in the glass idly and now she took a rather extended drink of it. "If you don't wake up each morning with at least one thing that you look forward to ahead of you, then why are you waking up at all?" She shrugged and downed the rest, wiping her mouth with the back of her wrist in a most unladylike way. "Now, if there are any specific questions you have about courses, this is the time to ask."

Onarr considered the Zeno's words for a moment. She spoke true. Well, perhaps, the wine was addling her mind but at least, he knew that the Zeno wasn't lying. Duty and obligation. Were those his excuses right now? His worries sated for the moment, Onarr wordlessly took out a roll of parchment that contained his course selections and pushed it over towards her.

"I have no further enquiries, maám," Onarr's tone then became curious as he pointed towards the Zeno. "Might I enquire what was your favourite first-year course?"

Sienna threw her head back and let out a bark of laughter. It was loud enough that Penny jumped a bit. "Mine? Oh, that was a course they no longer offer." She turned pensive for a moment, and her eyes flicked over her three female students. The Zeno raised her wineglass almost to her lips and then scowled when she realized that it was empty. "Maybe I'll tell you about it sometime." She winked mischievously.

"Oh come on!" Penny blurted. "You're seriously just going to dangle it out there like that?"

"With the utmost seriousness," Sienna chirped. She went for another glass. 

"Oh non non non!" Penny reprimanded. "Tu es ivre, grande soeur. Pose le verre à vin."  She pursed her lips sternly. "Maintenant."

"Pssshhh," Sienna snorted. "Estoy más sobria que tú, flamenco."

Penny gasped. "Vous vous moquez de mon handicap?"

"Si," Sienna answered, positively malicious.

Penny was crestfallen. She turned to Linah. "Ella me está intimidando," she wailed. "¡Sálvame!" Then Anesin: "Hon mobbar mig. Rädda mig!" Finally, a bit less surely, to Onarr. "Ìkà ni obìnrin náà! Ikà pupọ!" Perhaps he may have noticed that she more or less butchered the pronunciation, but context was everything. "Qui pouvait être si cruel envers une pauvre fille unijambiste?" She fairly draped herself over the arm of her sofa: the very picture of melodramatic despair.

Sienna raised an eyebrow. "¿Es esto lo que estamos haciendo ahora: hablar nuestras lenguas maternas?"

Onarr was unsure of the languages being spoken. He could only make out bits and pieces of each language that was being spoken, and Penny's Joruban was akin to a cat being skinned alive. 

"Ṣe eyi jẹ idanwo kan?" Onarr then paused, switching curiously to regard Sienna in Belzagg. "Dit is jammer dat hulle nie vir Joruban in Ersand'Enise aanbied nie. Ek sal aanbeveel dat Penny remediërende kursusse neem." 

Penny blushed fiercely. "Traitre! Tu étais censé être de mon côté!" She swatted once, ineffectually, in Onarr's direction before giving up the struggle and flopping back down, deflated. 

Sienna let out a full-throated laugh. "Or maybe he just knows who has the power here," she replied, before turning Onarr's way. "As to your question: most certainly not. I fear our melodramatic friend is right: I've simply had too much to drink." She paused for a moment, however. "That said, I suppose that it is a test, in a way. We shall spend two days of each week together for the next year: living, learning, and sleeping under the same roof. I imagine I wanted to gauge my Biros' comfort level and them see mine. Needless to say, you lot have passed."

True to Penny's advice, she laid off of the wine after that. A few more questions were asked and Penny, despite her... inebriated state, almost seemed to get the sense that the Zeno was politely probing. She barely made it up the stairs, fairly tore off her clothes, stuffed herself into her nightgown, and flopped into bed. "G'night, sisters," she mumbled, snuggling under her blankets. [i]Tomorrow, classes. Tomorrow, father. [/i]Sleep claimed her within moments.