First Session [Open]

Posts : 111 Join date : 2012-11-28 Age : 35

It was a brilliant day outside, and class was just winding down.
“Thus it was that in 2040 the existence of spiritually aware beings was formally recognized by the world at large. Near this time tensions were running high around the world. It would only be four years more before the last World War broke out. The rest, as they say, is history,” the young teacher said as she closed the text on the podium ahead of her. She gave her class a brilliant smile. She didn't look like she could be much older than her mid-twenties but there was an air of knowledge about her. Her blond hair was tied up in a tight bun at the back of her head, and she wore a rather plain looking outfit. Her brown eyes surveyed the class for a moment.
“I think that's enough of that for today though. We'll be ending early, as much as I know you all hate that,” she said with a small wink; the class laughed at that as the flurry of movement began that signaled the end of class.

“Next class we will begin talking about the denizens of Soul Society and its history, so those of you who want to move ahead can read up on the information I've sent you all. No formal homework will be assigned for tonight, but there will be a quiz sometime in the next few days so be ready.”
Many of the kids were already heading out the door, and that was fine. The rush of youth...it was nice to be around.
“Have a nice day Ms. Stone!” Someone said as they left, and Natalia waved after them. 'Natalia Stone' was a name she had adopted for this era, for she was the model for whom 'don't judge a book by its cover' had been made for. Natalia Stone was not in her mid-twenties and had not been for a long, long time. In fact, she was twice that old...and then a hundred times more. She was older than even that. However, that isn't information that was important. Or even known. What was known was that she had shown up with the appropriate credentials for a teaching position on a subject that was barely coming into prominence even in a place as involved with the spiritual worlds as the Hephaestus Academy.

Why would someone like Natalia be at a place like this though? Who was the say, and it also didn't matter much. She watched as the children gathered there things and started out. She pulled out a small hand-held device and checked her schedule; she had no other classes this day it seemed, as no one had needed a sub and the class that was supposed to be after this one was closed because too few students had signed up for it. Not everyone had realized how important such a class would be, especially for people like them. The Hephaestus Academy was unlike any other institution of learning on the planet, as it catered exclusively to those students who possessed some form of spiritual capability. Even its location was a tightly held secret. Little wonder why; not only was a student body like this academy's incredibly valuable, but this place was dangerous. It housed the largest population of spiritually aware humans on the planet; even to mortals that meant it was a place of immense power.

Power that could be used in another war.
Power that could be exploited for the benefit of the few.
Power . . .

Natalia began to gather the materials off her own desk, carefully stowing them away in her bag.

Zarathustra Posts : 233 Join date : 2012-11-29 Age : 32

First Session [Open] ShirasakaKoume6001259967

Though the day most certainly spoke of brilliance to others, misfortune made quick work of the young girl who had just so happened to arrive at the class right when it was ending. In fact, due to her poor sense of direction, she hadn't arrived at a single class so far. Two factors that allowed her to be excused is that she hadn't officially applied for any class that required her presence. After all, no one could blame her for losing herself among so many students.

Even at her original academy, she had never been in the company of such a large grouping of students. It frightened her... and her fear was only exacerbated as she experienced the mocking expressions of certain students who pushed her away from the door. Whether or not this was done purposefully or they simply desired to hurry to their next class, she could not tell.

She was use to more punishment than this, however. Her life was a cycle of abuse, so why would applying to an academy change that? One student pushed her over, and her frail body made little resistance as she fell face first to the ground, dropping both her badge and bag. She winced softly, covering the entirety of her face with her short blonde hair.

She picked herself up as quickly as she was pushed, to avoid the attention of malevolent eyes.... after all, she couldn't break away from her cycle. The cycle that started from the day she was born. She waited until each of the students left, and then walked in the class, only to see the teacher packing her bags. She wanted to inquire about the classes here, and she had missed every other teacher due to her carelessness.... would fate bestow her with yet another failure?

The young girl quickly ran towards Natalia, and bowed apologetically, "I'm sorry i couldn't be present to watch the inner-workings of your classroom... you see... this is my f-first day h-here.... and u-um... i'm trying to see what i can apply for... and.... h-hopefully... e-enjoy m-my stay a-at this academy. M-my.... n-name... is... S-Shirasaka... Shirasaka Koume... " When she spoke, the myriad of her words trailed off to such an extent that it would've been a miracle to discern the words that left her lips. Shirasaka expected the teacher to scold her for carelessness. She was awaiting a smile that seemed more like one of pity rather than kindness.

Posts : 111 Join date : 2012-11-28 Age : 35

Natalia had gathered most of her things when there was a disturbance; at the door someone was trying to enter the room while the rest of the students exited. That itself wasn't too bad. However, there was the sound of a muffled impact, and someone hitting the ground. The teacher stood up, looked at the wall that separated the classroom from the hall; she seemed to stare at it a second longer than was needed. The flow of energy...she picked out which student she believed had just engaged in a semi-violent act against another student and made a mental note of it. It may have been nothing; just someone having a bad day and taking it out on another. There was no apology, no sound of helping the other student back up. She'd sort them out later.

She finished gathering her things as a solitary student entered the room; based on the red mark on her face and the rather disgruntled appearance of her clothing it was not too hard to figure out this was the student who had been pushed to the ground outside. With little preamble the girl ran over to the desk and gave a deep bow before words all but literally began falling out of her mouth.

Natalia blinked once. Twice.

Then she smiled; if Shiraska had expected a smile full of pity then she may have been pleasently surprised. Natalia's smile rarely had such a thing in it, and this smile was small but kind.
“Stop. Take a breath,” she said. Her voice had the barest hint of laughter in it; she hadn't seen a girl this apparently shy in some time. Natalia put her bag back on the desk, and reached out a hand between them.
“Now, its a pleasure to meet you Ms. Koume. I'm Ms. Stone.,” she said, still smiling.

After a moment (whether or not Shiraska had decided to accept Natalia's handshake) Natalia waved her hand at the girl.
“Don't worry about missing the class, especially if you haven't registered for it. If its your first day I'm not surprised you'd be a bit lost. There is no place like this in the world, so its a tad hard to navigate, no?” she said, turning it into a question to give the girl a chance to remark.

“I'm a little surprised though. Normally the staff are quite good about getting people settled and signed up. Anyway, I take it you're looking to try and get signed up for classes then? Natalia asked.

It was weak but there was power in this girl, not unlike many of the students here. Natalia doubted it was much more than being able to see spirits at this point, but all power can grow can it not? Besides that, there was something to this girl that caught Natalia's attention and indeed affected how she had reacted to her. She was battered. Natalia couldn't know the details obviously, but it was in the way she held herself. It was in how she reacted to Natalia's own actions. Natalia had seen it before, in a thousand different ways and in hundreds of thousands of people. It wasn't something you could ignore once you knew what was there to be seen.

"Anything in particular you're looking to take?"

Zarathustra Posts : 233 Join date : 2012-11-29 Age : 32

Shirasaka, who had expected the worst, now found herself dumbfounded by the serene kindness with which this woman had greeted her. Though having no particular perception of how teachers were(since they varied from class to class), the young girl had already resigned herself to negative thoughts, believing wholeheartedly that the course of her day would travel down a grim path. A small shade of red gathered within her gentle cheeks, as she inhaled the air around her before regaining her composure, what little was left of it. When entering a foreign environment such as this, appearing so nervous as to be on the verge of a panic attack, Shirasaka's anxiousness was certainly not unreasonable. From the small briefing she was given before entering, Shirasaka was still awestruck. Among every single student housed within this location, each held a phenomenal power that could change landscapes and warp reality, power that could be used for the greater good or malevolent acts of cruelty, should the student lack moral guidance. Amazement was clear in her expression as she lost herself once more, within the thought of being around men and women who could very well save the very universe she lived in.

Was Ms. Stone one of those people? Even if she were not, this woman was a knight in shining armor who had, with a single strike of her lance, nullified much of Shirasaka's worry. If other teachers were as kind and understanding as her.... then perhaps... she would not fall prey to the same fate she experienced at her last learning facility. The way she formulated things within her imagination were quite strange indeed. In any case, staring mouth agape like this might ruin her chances. Upon realizing that, she quickly decided to speak, though her tone was still very much timid. "A-ah! Y-yes! I've been looking through many of the classrooms to see which one is best suited to my temperament. The fact that I've been enrolled here is still hard to take it in. T-this school.... is for superhumans, humans who are great people. I'm not a great person.... and I do not believe i can do anything worthy of being granted permission into such a prestigious school. Maybe that's why those students pushed me.... they probably felt the same way..."

She wrapped her hand around Natalia's, shaking it ever so softly. It was the first time she had ever felt warmth from anyone else other than her mother. Although it might have been a normal handshake to Natalia, the contact to Shirasaka was magical. Everything was seemingly going good so far... however, Shirasaka had long since known to keep a pessimistic view towards a good thing. For, what might appear to be good to others where in reality, thinly-veiled lies. She wanted to get escape from that line of thought, so for the first time, she decided to stay optimistic. She chuckled at the idea. Shirasaka the optimist. Didn't have a bad ring to it...

Posts : 111 Join date : 2012-11-28 Age : 35

Natalia couldn't exactly tell what Shiraska was expecting when she had approached her. Had the young girl expected anger or annoyance? She all but stood there, mouth agape, for a few seconds before her brain seemed to catch up with what was going on. This did nothing to dampen the smile that Natalia wore of course. As Shiraska began to speak however it did dampen; it was only a slight bit, and it by no means became cold. It would be better to say that it became ever so slightly thoughtful. They shared their handshake, and Natalia let a simple silence close in around them. If only for a few moments.
“Hmmm...no. That won't do at all,” the teacher said simply, quirking her head slightly to the while still looking at Shiraska. She seemed to consider the girl a moment, stepping out and around the girl.

“This is indeed an academy for great people. People who will do great things in their own time and beyond. Not everyone here though has some kind of ability that makes them great. No ability makes one great; their ability may help them, but it is nothing more than their own selves that will make them great. The possession or lack thereof does not determine such things,” the teacher said as she finished her inspection of the girl, leaning against the table with another smile.

“Can you see the future?” That answer Natalia already knew; it was the words Shiraska used combined with a gut feeling. She'd been listening to that gut for a long time, and learned to listen when it spoke.
“Then you've little idea of who the Shiraska Koume of the future is or what great things you may accomplish, no? You know only who you are now. But I know something more,” Natalia said, winking at the girl before she suddenly grabbed her things and made a motion for the girl to follow her as she walked out into the hallway. She started down the hallway, confident that Shiraska would follow her. As she did, Natalia continued.

“There are billions of people on this planet. In this academy there are thousands, tens of thousands. There is something that all of they have in common with you. It is the simple fact that they are not you, and you are not them. You are your own person. Search the world a thousand times over; you will find people who have similar tendencies to you yes, you may find people who have similar events that have happened to them that you have. Indeed, you may find that one person who looks like you because they say everyone has their twin somewhere. What you won't find is you; no other person on the planet now, before, or after will have had the same experiences as you. No one will know everything you know for the same reasons you know them.

At that Natalia spun around to look at the girl, giving another smile and continuing to walk backwards.
“That means no one else in the world will be able to accomplish what you will, in the way you will. I'd call that pretty amazing, wouldn't you?
Now, about those classes. You said you were looking into some to find something that suited you. What is it you want to do then? Any ideas?”

Zarathustra Posts : 233 Join date : 2012-11-29 Age : 32

Shirasaka could barely register the kindness that this woman was showing to her. For someone who had experienced the tragedy that she did, kindness was a far too foreign concept. Shirasaka could almost feel a single tear rolling down from her eyes as she listened to Natalia's inspirational words. Her mother was always someone who could speak similiar speeches, but this was coming from a complete stranger, and therefore it meant that much more. Every word that left her mouth had instilled in Shirasaka, the one word she had long since forgotten---hope. When she first entered this academy, each thought running through her mind was built upon the idea of how she would fail, how she would be thrown out, or even how someone would ridicule her for not giving them praise or being so quiet.

Listening to Natalia, she felt so much at ease that her heart nearly threatened to burst free from her chest. As she motioned for her to follow, Shirasaka rushed hurriedly, grabbing her own items so that she could catch up with her. And as she listened to her finish those words while walking backwards, Shirasaka wrapped her small arms around Natalia's waist and pressed her head against her stomach. She would never perform such a straight forward action so boldly, at least not normally. But this was different, and Shirasaka wanted to make Natalia know how much she appreciated the lesson she had just imparted upon her. "T-thank you.... M-ms. stone..... Thank you. "

Posts : 111 Join date : 2012-11-28 Age : 35

Natalia stopped moving when the girl suddenly moved and embraced her, uttering a broken thanks. It must have been a long time since this girl had received any encouraging words she figured, and that brought a smaller, sadder smile to her face. She wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders, and with the other she patted her head in a soothing fashion. If there was anyone else in the hallway to notice the exchange, Natalia didn't care. Some believed teachers should have been more aloof; Natalia believed that sometimes people needed to know others were there.
“There there now. You're quite welcome. No tears; this isn't a place for tears. This is a place to learn and grow,” she said to the younger girl before she released the embrace.

“You've had a hard life I think, haven't you? Well that is behind you now, no? The Greek God Hephaestus, whom this academy takes its name from, was the god of the forge. Therefore, this is also a place to temper ourselves, and to become greater than we were before. This is a place of transformation. While you shouldn't forget your past, you should remember that it is exactly that; the past. Learn from it, but never let it control you; a wise man once told me that,” Natalia said with a smile.
“So. If you could study anything, anything at all, what would it be? What do you want to be when you get older?” Natalia asked once more. She wasn't put-out by having to ask the question again. Not when this girl seemed to be taking so well to the attention she was getting. It took some students time to adjust; especially those who had a lot on their plate coming into the academy.

It took people a long time to recover from their wounds. She knew that one all too well. Some wounds were easily reopened as well. Natalia decided then that this was one of those students she'd have to keep an eye on; not because she was going to cause trouble, but because everyone needs someone watching out for them from time to time. While she had her own things to do at this place, she had the time.

Zarathustra Posts : 233 Join date : 2012-11-29 Age : 32

When Natalia released the embrace, it was as if the entire demeanor of Shirasaka Koume had underwent a process of rejuvenation. No longer did the unemotional countenance exist, for what graced her face now was nothing but the irresistibly charming face of a young girl. Natalia was incomparable to any teacher she learned under in the past. Shirasaka was well aware that it was no job of the teacher to hold any attachments towards the student, but Natalia seemingly did not adhere to such a school of thought. She accepted her embrace, spoke words of encouragement, and eradicated most of the anxiousness present within her heart. Much of her was still very much timid but at the very least, she was no longer thinking of herself as a lesser being. Indeed, even as Natalia continued to speak, Shirasaka felt as though the shattered resolve she had entered with in this school would soon be a thing of the past. When the subjected turned towards her career path, Shirasaka shyly turned her head towards the side, momentarily fumbling with her answer. To someone like her, the concept of dreams were foreign. To put it simply, fate was her most unrelentingly terrible foe. However, it would be a complete lie to say that Shirasaka had no dreams whatsoever. She definitely possessed aspirations, though they were surely not as apparent as others. Once she had gathered up the proper courage, Shirasaka finally answered Natalia.

"I wish to be a novelist when I grow up, but I feel like that is boring when compared to a school of super-powered human beings. Still, I love the thought of being able to bring one's imagination to life through the medium known as novels. It truly is beautiful to see some of the greatest authors baring their souls, pouring out every ounce of emotion into their work. To me, I find that when an author pours out enough of that emotion, that an indescribable intimacy is attained between him and his reader. "

Shirasaka was not even the least bit mindful of how fluidly she was now speaking. There was still much reservedness in her tone, but the stutters and broken vocabulary were now nonexistent, or so it seemed. She blushed as she listened to herself, turning her attention away from Natalia's face, so as to avoid the risk of embarrassment. As far as classes were concerned, curiosity compelled Shirasaka to ask Natalia an important question.

"Although I know we've only just met... and my decision might be rash... If it is acceptable by you, then I would like the prospect of applying within your class, Ms. Stone. "

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