what time is it?

[authorships]

Who: Andersen and you!!
What: An unpleasant pop quiz, office hours, and general sulkiness.
When: July 7th - July 31st
Where: Around campus, downtown Soleil.
Warnings: Some heavy drinking, nothing else. Will update as necessary!

1 | I'M OFF THE CLOCK, THE PRESSURE'S OUT

[A vacation is sorely needed after the hullaboo surrounding the academy. The Herald's fall has significantly dampened whatever festive atmosphere summer might've had. In Andersen's opinion, it was but a taste of future battles to come. Such horrible sights were to be expected. Still--

Sometimes, the best thing for a troubled mind is work. At the end of June, Andersen posts notice that he'll be hosting an accelerated summer course for Advanced Runic Inscriptions, with classes four days a week. Despite the title, anyone's welcome to join, so long as they prove they have the passion and talent for the subject...]

A. OFFICE HOURS
[Andersen's strict about his no meetings without appointments rule. If you're a student, he'll turn you away and scold you. If you're a faculty member... well. He'll let you stay if you drop by unannounced, but he won't be happy about it.

His office is a tidy room, furnished with the bare minimum. Several of Andersen's books are on display, while notebooks are stacked on his desk. A coffeemaker sits in the corner, which he switches on once you sit down.]

All right. [He has his back turned to watch the water brew.] What do you want from me? Don't dance around the issue, tell me straight out.

B. POP QUIZ
[You think he's gonna skimp on tests? BRRZ. WRONG. Andersen's a firm believer that experience is the best teacher. And what better way to learn than to take your art outside?

The focus this week is on area-of-effect runes. He takes his class outside for his lecture. Andersen struts and gestures as if he's an actor on a stage, not some 50-something year old man with illusions of grandeur on the lawn.]

A rune inscriber is like a writer. Material is everywhere! Creativity paired with specificity is what differentiates an inscriber from a magus. Their magic comes from the blood. Ours comes from the structure we create - from the verses we compose. Flesh and blood are exhaustible. Objects are not. The very ground beneath your feet - [here, he stamps his foot] -can be yours to command. None of you are at that level yet. You're all amateurs.

[that's,]

That's why we're out here. Show me that you're willing to break your back like a workhorse. I want you to construct a 100 square foot boundary with your runic verses with at least one successful effect. Harass passerbys. Invite the friends you secretly hate. Use whatever guinea pigs you wish.

[He takes on a falsetto.]

"But Professor! It's summer vacation!" Bullshit. Time is a false concept. I'll grade you as hard as I please! Now hop to it!

(OOC NOTE: you're free to come up with whatever effect your field has! you can also determine how well it works!! GO BUCK WILD. set things on fire. i guess. if you really want to you crazy pyromaniacs,)

2 | I WANT FABULOUS

[On the weekends, Andersen procrastinates on his grading. In the mornings, he stays holed up in his dormitory scribbling his novel's draft. Come the afternoon and evening, he's wandering about town...]

A. PERFORMANCE CENTER (FACULTY ONLY)
[Without fail, Andersen attends the center every Saturday night to see whatever's playing. He's fond of operas and plays - not so much musicals - but the experience of seeing the actors on stage is what he enjoys. If you're a faculty member, you'll get a text one weekday night...]

There's a good show tonight. You free?

B. DOWNTOWN SOLEIL | CW: HEAVY DRINKING
[And, without fail, every Saturday night, Andersen gets drunk. His alcohol tolerance is incredibly high and it takes a good couple of classes to get himself tipsy. He frequents whatever bar is convenient, which means he hops from bar to bar in the search for something new. If he makes eye contact with someone he recognizes, he'll scrunch up his face and immediately turn away to hunch over his six or so glasses like some awful, six-foot tall goblin.

leave him alone he doesn't know you]

Comments

Office hours

[ahew_kha]

[Given her ridiculous nonsense about not wanting to upset anyone basically ever, of course she's made it a habit to make appointments for his office hours by now.

She's a little nervous about going over this whole mess, but it's... better than the alternative by far if she just let things play their course. No one wanted to deal with a pissed off rampaging dragon after all.

Once she's inside she's taking a seat and slowly blinking at him.]

I thought we sort of spoke about it before? Something that might help keep my dragon side under control instead of... rampaging every time?

1b, OTA!

[highelves]

[ ana is opting to try out a rune that can cause flight for 10 seconds. she is not touching any nature-based runes, so fire's out, unfortunately. she can easily do 100 square feet with water, but...that's not happening, and she's here to learn and impress, not one or the other.

she successfully creates a boundary that's approximately 100 square feet, but as for the effects being successful...

well. let's just hope you're not the passerby who stumbles into the boundary and starts jumping up and down like a pogo stick for a whole minute. ]

A. Office Hours

[improbablenotimpossible]

["Arthur Bell" had a bundled of folders in his arms. It was the late afternoon, and while he can walk around in the sun fine, it's not his idea circumstances, given he was stifling a yawn in that artful way of avoiding a flash of fang]

Paperwork, the usual - signing off on supplies, time tables. Bureaucratic upkeep.

[The man glances to the side, looking irritated]

Got roped into dropping it off 'since it's on your way'.

1B, OTA

[buddinghopes]

[Oh good god who thought this was a good idea. Who thought letting her decide on effects was okay.

Sure, the effect she came up with is successful, but anyone who passes through this 100 square foot area she's taken from her own is now sparkling for the entire duration.

Who let her pick this effect.]

[authorships]

[The first time he spoke with Kisara, he found it difficult to believe she was a dragon. She's not exactly what you'd call prime real estate for a dragon. She's well-mannered and a little too timid at times. He won't ever voice it aloud, but her personality increases the pity he has for her situation.]

Right. That.

[He doesn't turn around just yet. Instead, he asks:]

Let's get down to work, then. Do you take coffee?

[authorships]

[And here comes Andersen, hands tucked in his coat's ridiculously large pockets as he glances at the runes of her boundary.]

Flight? Interesting choice. Why?

[Yes, he's grilling you.]

[ahew_kha]

[It's either she's a vessel for one, she's a shifter into one, or she just is a dragon in a human form. It's up in the air, really, though she's leaning more towards the third option by this point in time.]

... I haven't actually ever had coffee before? [This poor sheltered girl, good grief.]

[highelves]

I thought it might be a good boost for fellow combatants on the battle field. Of course, the range wouldn't be this long so as to avoid potentially boosting enemies as well, and I'd try to keep it towards allied forces, but I wanted to practice the rune itself anyway.

[ she tilts her head and looks at him. grill her!!! she wants to learn!! ]

[authorships]

[The mention of paperwork draws a dramatic groan from him.]

I told them I wouldn't be touching that crap today. Look at how much I have to grade! [He gestures at the stack of papers that he obviously didn't procrastinate on, no sir.] They're running me to the ground. Everything's been helter-skelter as of late!

[authorships]

[.......................................]

Are you finished with your work?

[S Q U I N T S]

[authorships]

[hey what the fuck. Andersen whips around on his heel.]

... you aren't joking, are you? [christ] How long have you been at this school?

[ahew_kha]

[Look. L o o k. Her life(ves) have been rough, okay.

She's not sure how to really answer this, good lord.]

I don't really joke about that sort of thing? And, uh, a month or two? Something like that...

[buddinghopes]

Yes, sir!

[And she's beaming... I'm so sorry, Andersen.]

It's kind of a silly, harmless effect and not particularly useful, but I like annoying people.

[... At least she's honest about that part.]

[authorships]

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."

[Andersen recites the saying in a dry, amused tone.]

Was that your line of thinking? Hmph. Since the dawn of man, humans have been fascinated by the concept of taking to the skies like the birds. I shouldn't be surprised that you picked the most fanciful power to begin with.

[There's a 50/50 chance he'll go off on one of his philosophical ramblings... but he doesn't, thank god. He looks right back at her.]

In what situations would flight be useful for a combatant, Ana? Give me an example.

[improbablenotimpossible]

Tell me about it.

[He didn't have to go through some edgelord lich's tower made of organs to come back to this nonsense. While he can see, and is skeptical of the idea that Andersen wasn't procrastinating on the work, he saw no point in mentioning it right now]

I was planning on getting through my backlog of books - but least they did not ask me to fetch coffee for them.

2b - 27th

[yokeye]

[Toki only recognizes Andersen as "some professor", having not attended any of his classes. He has yet to catch one of the professors at a bar though, so he has to invade.]

Professor~! You look like you've had a little too much there~! Six glasses!? How many times has each of these been filled!? I know it's a Saturday, but aren't you still supposed to be representing our illustrious academy off the clock!?

[Trolling feels good. He's missed this.]

[highelves]

It was, yes.

[ she crosses her arms and ponders his question a little. ]

Hmm. Well, in the case of the Herald fight, had I known this particular rune in general, I may have been able to put more distance between myself and my ally, and the necrotic blast that resulted in these injuries.

[ she points to the bandage wrapped around her head. ]

This rune, if I'm not mistaken, is designed to give a small speed boost upon takeoff.

1b, ota

[lovebreaker]

[ Oh hell yes.

Aiko successfully sets up the required boundary, but her effect is... well, it leaves quite a bit to be desired. She's going for little pillars of flame but what actually ends up happening is, in certain places one may step, tiny flames erupt.

Very tiny flames. ]

Nooo, you're supposed to be bigger...!

[authorships]

[Okay. Her honesty earns a roll of his eyes, but he appreciates it. What students choose for their boundary's effects says a bit about them as well. In a way, this activity worked as a personality test.

Andersen takes from his satchel a strange stuffed animal which he tosses into the field. It sparkles with abandon.]

Hmph. It's a useless field. But you didn't need me to come over and tell you that. You already knew that.

[Is that all he has to say...?]

However. The effects are precise, annoying as they are. Your control over the verse's composition is good.

[He stuffs his hands in his pockets.]

I'd give this result a 70%. Maybe an 75%, if I'm feeling particularly generous. But you're squandering the chance to apply your knowledge in the field. It's as if you were told to compose an essay in Latin, and you turned in the translated lyrics to Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda." [In an especially dry tone:] Razzle and dazzle me with something more practical.

[authorships]

[HE HATES HIS LIFE RIGHT NOW!! Why is this brat approaching him! Andersen scowls and hunches down even more.]

Watch your mouth, boy. The same goes for you. No student of the prestigious Daybreak Academy would run around town, heckling the elderly.

[authorships]

[Andersen, who's testing everyone's fields by tossing in a sacrificial stuffed animal, watches impassively as the teeny-tiny flames scorch the toy's fur.

He doesn't look impressed at all.]

Your composition's as sloppy as a greased pig. This outcome shouldn't be a surprise.

[yokeye]

[Toki laughs at that. Andersen must not be that familiar with him either. This is good.]

I am appalled you consider a most honest concern for the state of my professors heckling! An atrocious accusation! And in a public place where witnesses can attest to this sordid behavior from a seemingly well-mannered instructor of young minds! You should be utterly ashamed of yourself, sir!

[He slams a fist on the bar for emphasis.]

[authorships]

And nobody's taken you out to a cafe? Good grief. Your friends should treat you better.

[The strong, bitter smell of coffee soon permeates the air. Andersen pulls out two cups from his cupboard - one blue and one pink, the latter being a little chipped. He pours out the hot drink.]

When you travel somewhere new, you ought to try the food and drink. The soul of the people lies in those two things. You learn about the world they live in by tasting what they taste every day.

[He sets the blue cup in front of her, along with some cream and sugar.]

Try it. If it's too bitter, put in some cream or sugar.

[ahew_kha]

I've... heard of cafes before, but it's not like I really have money here or anything to be doing that? [She was literally living on the outskirts of Cairo, but this is fine. She's quietly watching him move and that smell is... certainly strong and certainly something. Really, she's not too sure how to feel about it.]

I guess so? Hadn't... thought much about it, didn't really know coffee was a thing? [Child, child no.

At least she's open to the idea and is going to just sort of watch that cup for a moment, trying to decide on how this might end up tasting.]

O... kay. [Weird, but she'll at least try a sip of it since it looks kind of ridiculously hot. And, it is, but it's not too bad. The cream and sugar should help, though, so she's just going to add bits of those and let it sit for now.]

It's not bad?

[lovebreaker]

Well, I'm glad it is, if you're gonna try to burn such a cute plush! I didn't sign up for taking cute stuffed animals' lives!