Sanctuaire Estrange IC

By the time the lunch bell rang, Duke was still wearing a small, smug grin about the events in Mr Ollamain's class. It had certainly been unlike anything he'd known back home. He wasn't even sure it really qualified as educational in the traditional sense, but at least the class had held his attention for the full duration; which was something few other class teachers had achieved. Researching a particularly harsh Shakespearean insult? Hell yesh that's something he could throw a little effort into. And he was fairly pleased with the result: "Sell your face for five pence and 'tis dear, thou mewling onion-eyed bum-bailey!" It had made the lanky boy's bottom lip wobble anyway.

In fact it was only when class had broken out that he'd really turned much attention to the other student around him. And it was then that he'd noticed a striking contradiction. On the whole, the entire class was a fairly good-looking bunch, bar the fact that they were replete with strange little features. Like the fair-faced boy who would look like a handsome, rugged sports guys if it weren't for those slightly elongated ears. Or the white haired girl with the strange birthmarks around the fram of her face almost like some kind of animal pattern. Yet for all of these features, none of them seemed strictly like defects or blemishes; they weren't strictly unseemly or deformed, just highly unusual. That said...the boy he'd been sitting next to hadn't been the most blessed in the looks department...maybe why he'd taken the insult so personally. Oh well.

He wasted no time getting out into the hall and checked his map to locate the dinner hall. Hopefully the food they served here wouldn't exhibit the same 'uniqueness' as the students and faculty.

It took him a good five minutes and a couple of wrong turns, by which time he was famished and grumbling under his breath, but he found the cafeteria and grabbed a tray. Looking around he couldn't see Abby just yet. He expected to see her sitting alone, but a part of him hoped that she'd possibly managed to make some friends. Part of the appeal of coming to this new town was that they wouldn't have too much requirement to look out for each other. For one thing, they'd escaped the primary threat in their lives. But more to the point, this town had agreed to harbour them, so it'd be just rude of them to leave the two to their own devices right?

The food seemed normal enough. That was without tasting it of course, but he felt comfortable enough loading up his plate with stodge. Looking around he saw that most of the tables were either unoccupied so far or too crowded, which once again suited him fairly well. So he took a seat at an empty table. That way, if anyone sat with him an subsequently objected to his company, he'd be able to fall back on the fact that it was they who'd opted to sit there.

Mia didn't notice the human boy at first, she'd been staring at the door for so long anticipating his entrance when she finally looked away it must have been the moment he chose to walk through the door, if it wasn't for her nose when he moved past her table she probably wouldn't have noticed him for quite sometime.
She was too busy looking at Dawn and her brother so that when she turned back the boy was already in. Due to her nose though the selkie picked up on an unfamiliar smell in the classroom and that was only due to it being such a contrast to all the other flamboyant scents around her. It was simple- a smell that didnt bother you. Which was a change. Sparing a glance over her shoulder she caught a boy sitting down next to a guy...people tended to avoid sitting beside. That had to be the human. She didn't know what all the fuss was about- he didn't smell, look or seem threatening. That didn't stop her from looking discretly over her shoulder though- it didn't stop anyone else either- everyone was eyeballing the new student like a fresh clam. Mr Ollamain arrived shortly after and set the class at ease with an amusing task at finding ol' english insults. She didn't really pay attention to the light classwork, she was too interested in the new boy and she continued glancing over at him until he glanced back to which point she kept her eyes on the desk for the rest of the lesson.

When everyone rose to leave the class room Mia couldn't help but allow her eyes to dither after him. He was unnatural and new and she couldn't control her selkie curiosity like any animal placed close to a new and foriegn attraction. She wanted to investigate and take a nibble, even if she was weary and uncertain. Trailing after the human she lingered at the lunch hall door as he went about getting his food and sitting on an empty table by himself. Mia couldn't help feeling bad for him- she couldn't imagine what it must be like to be a lonely creature starting somewhere new. Mia always had her pod so even when she came her she was never alone. Humans were such solitary beings it seemed. Buying an apple from the cafeteria she bee-lined through the crowds nodding at a few friends and holding her rucksack high in the air to avoid having it snagged by some male hopefuls trying to play a joke.

Mia caught her pod, crowded round a table close by, observe her move past without stopping to take a seat. The boys shot looks of question at her gestuing for her to get her tail back there while the girls knelt up on there seats their eyes wide and interested as they gossiped in low tones. Mia tried her best to ignore them and stopped infront of the lone table where the boy sat. Sliding herself on a seat opposite she smiled giddily at him propping her hands up under her chin on the table. She was nervous- she wasn't sure what she was supposed to say to a human. After all they had their foreign habits as such didnt they- still she couldn't just sit staring at him like 'exibit A'. Taking a bite out of her apple she swallowed the mouthful before introducing herself. "I'm Mia."

Duke blinked and looked up at the student who plonked down into the seat opposite him. 'That didn't take long' he thought to himself. He quickly recognise the cute white-haired girl from Mr Ollamain's class. From closer up, it was more apparent than ever that the unique aspects of her appearance - which were exactly that; unique and not strictly unbecoming - seemed entirely natural to her, however unnatural as they would be on any other person he could think of. It almost ruled out the possibility that they were defects, blemishes, scars, or the result of fallout from a nearby nuclear disaster befouling previous generations. He tried not to stare too much. He hadn't exactly gone out of his way to endear himself to the populace so far, but he stopped short of being outright rude (for now). And although he'd certainly heard the words "stop staring at my...." before, the phrase had rarely ended with the word "face" (rather instead the words, "my face is up here").

But it wasn't just her appearance which was unusual, but also her demeanour. There was absolutely no sense at all from her of wanting to make sure he didn't want to be left alone; there was just a blanket assumption that he'd be happy to be spoken to. As it was, her coming to join him wasn't a bad result considering the grand spectrum of possibilities; he could have been joined by the onion-eyed bum-bailey he'd been sat next to.

"I'm Duke." he said with a cough. "So give me the head's up...who's classes do I need to avoid to prevent myself going white-haired?"

Mia gazed at the human awaiting his response, he was a skinny thing compared to the big boned boy selkies, he had a plain complexion without any attractive pattern, blunt teeth, no claws, wasn't hairy in anyway...the only attentive thing about him was his hair colour and a fair face she supposed. How did humans attract their mate- was it honestly all down to their hair- how peculiar if so. She realised after a few moments that they were both quite literally staring at one another and that made her wonder what there was to stare at on her. She'd trimmed her whiskers hadn't she?
He gave a small cough to break the silence and introduced himself as 'Duke' and then went on to say something else. Mia combed through a lock of her hair uncertainly at his next remark.
"What do you mean?" she murmured cautiously. "Is there something wrong with my hair-you don't like it?"

Mia was born with white hair- she didnt know you could go white haired from classes. Did humans not like white hair. Had she made a mistake? Her father always said her hair was an attractive feature, she had never heard anyone else dislike it before. He said it so openly too- were all humans so openly offensive- perhaps it was how they interacted- perhaps she should be offensive back?
Mia bit her lip. "Maybe you should give me a heads up on what makes you go blue haired" she added. She wasn't too sure what humans took as offensive. Had she done it right...

The spiky haired banshee hummed softly to himself as his students continued to insult eachother. They poorly masked their chatter regarding the human who, fortunately, was oblivious and would no doubt be the main exhibit during lunchtime. The speculation and name calling was so feverish that no one seemed to realize just how withdrawn Mr. Ollamain had become after the last round of insults were hurled in his direction, lost in his own thoughts.
Sweet silver knife,
So quick in my hand
So sharp to the flesh-
Suddenly the shrill cacophony that was the school bell disrupted his rambling thoughts, giving him a jolt large enough to knock him off his seat. Or at least it would have had Aoi been on a chair; instead the banshee was perched precariously on his desk which he soon rolled from in a manner somewhere in-between clumsy and acrobatic. The students laughed as he hit the back wall with an audible 'oof', grinning in a slightly embarrassed fashion as he rubbed the back of his head, "How fortunate am I that my head bares no burden to endanger!" He laughed with the others as they filed out of the room, "I am sure you all can empathise..." Ai added, dubiously. Finally, the room otherwise deserted, he pulled himself from the floor with a disturbing struggle. His spindly limbs felt hollow from hunger and his mind was wandering. He hadn't eaten since - Well, he couldn't quite recall. It must have been around the last time he slept which was a few days prior. Luckily his kind needed little sleep but his appetite was a worry. He simply hadn't had the time to satisfy his stomach, not with all the preparations Sebastian had enforced.

Ollamain gathered his things, the conflict between his longing for food and the cautious self-consciousness these human arrivals brought on leaving him depressed. Depressed and increasingly delirious. He stumbled out of the room, knocking down a student or two as he shuffled jauntily in the general direction of the next class whilst mumbling apologies. The ring was itching his finger, adding a touch of agitation to an already volatile set of emotions. In the next few classes he hid this growing mental sore, very successfully from practice in such endeavors over the years. Later on, as the lunch bell rang, he came past the dinner hall and saw Mia, a student of his, conversing with Drake. The blue-haired young man had impressed him somewhat, his insult quite good and was fairly sure he had enjoyed the task. A good sign, to his mind. Of course, right then the mortal just made him frustrated. All mortals did at times but humans especially. He could barely pick an emotion across the boy's face - Had be become that distant from them? The dead were so different to the living, it appeared, and right now he wasn't in the mood to see this in a good light. Ai snarled something in an ancient Gaelic dialect to himself, storming off to the nearest exit with a furious air and burning eyes.

I hunger.

The thought consumed his brain, repeating again and again. It carved itself onto his soul and twisted his cold entrails like a hot blade. A familiar, if unwelcome sensation. He was not entirely controlling himself anymore as his body raged, stabbing and crushing and pulling tremulous strings like he were a puppet. He muttered to himself in some bizarre language. Ai burst through a door, trudging outside and gripping his head tightly with both hands, as if in pain. Several teachers, good friends to him, had been roused and had the sense not to follow whilst advising students similarly. While very few, if any, knew his dietary requirements the nature of his teeth suggested something unwholesome enough to not pry. For most, at least.

Echo didn't hate school in general, no in fact it was quite the opposite. If asked what she thought of it, she may have even gone as far to say that she enjoyed it. Save for one class and that was her first hour, the dreaded and reposed class that made her head throb whenever the teacher started his lecture and put problems on the board. Numbers and letters meshed together into formula's and functions that either made her feel as if she were dyslexic or she was reading an entire different language. That wasn't to say that she was good at it, but it was just the class that she could do with out. In fact math in her family was like a taboo word. Her parents hated it, and so did her sisters. It just wasn't their subject. To many rules for free spirits such as the pixies. But she needed to learn it nevertheless.

But what kept her from falling asleep, or doodling small little pixies in her notebook was the fact that right behind her, was Abby, the human, or rather girl, that everyone was so interested in. At Thomas suggestion of the two of them showing Abby around the school, Echo had made it quite clear that she wasn't going to take no for an answer. Maybe she was being to forceful, but she could blame it on the long standing bonds that existed between humans and pixies, even if humans no longer believed in them. Nevertheless, Abby seemed to be like a nice person, though one that kept things to herself.

Echo had been able to discern that just by looking at her, and seeing how she composed herself. Beautiful eyes, hid something brutal and tormenting. But she put on a smile as if nothing was wrong, that she was this strong girl albeit a bit quiet. But it wasn't echo's place to prode and pressure her into telling them anything. In fact if she simply wanted to forget that was fine with her. Sancutaire was a place to start a new and Echo wouldn't hold a grudge if any one wanted to keep their past in the past.

So when the first bell ended, Thomas and Echo took up their jobs of showing Abby around school, delivering her to her classes, and answering any questions that she had. Hour by hour passed until finally it was lunch time, and the three of them meandered down to the dining hall, were students cohorted about the days events so far and the latest gossip. It was rather large establishment, and tables were all ready filling with students and their lunches. Her eyes landed on Mia who was sitting across from thew new boy. She smiled before turning towards Thomas and Abby.

"I'll be back," she said as she disappeared within the crowd. Fruit was calling her name and as she arrived at the table in which it was held it. She grabbed a rather large bowl and tossed in a few strawberries and blueberries. Her hands reached for the few slices of apples that were left before she finished off the makeshift salad with slices of bananas. She weaved her way through the crowd, tossing a slice of banana into her mouth as she arrived and took her place beside Abby and Thomas.

She took a look around the room before her eyes landed on the other human. She raised an eyebrow and examined him for a quick moment before she nudged Abby gently.
"That's your brother right?" she asked, a smile on her face.

Duke held his jaw open as if to utter words, but couldn't quite piece together an intelligible response to Mia. Did she not understand the joke?

"I like your hair just fine." he gabbled, then shook his head, scrambling for something to right the awkwardness. "Oh forget I said anything. Anyway it's obviously me who's out of touch because here comes someone else with the same..."

His reference was to the white haired girl who was approaching with his sister. He was quite relieved to see her, seeing as he wasn't entirely sure how the brief conversation with Mia was going, and having his sister around would provide a decent litmus test as to whether it was Mia or him who was acting strange.

However he rolled his eyes somewhat when Abby openly asked Mia if she was Duke's 'new friend'. But at the same time he couldn't help but notice the girl and boy Abby seemed to have latched on to...which was odd since Abby had sadly never been hugely successful in making friends at school. Did they 'assign' friends in this place? Was that why Mia had come straight over to the table?

He looked between Mia and the girl Abby was with - they were both so pretty and yet...different....was 'exotic' the right word? Even the guy, he was a looker for as much as Duke could tell about it.

"Looks like we're quite the popular ones around here don't you think Abby?" he sneered, noticing as well the way other kids around the dinner hall threw glances and murmers among themselves.

Mia smiled broadly at the human to the extent a few of her pointed teeth were revealed as he scrambled for words. He set a strange example for the male side of the human race but nothing alarming- her father really was a wolly getting her hyped up and anxious over this. It felt pleasantly outrageous to talk to him and as a result she sent a confident, straight backed look over to the pod of Selkies who watched the interaction feeling quite smug with herself for being rebel enough to approach the 'dangerous human' first 'all alone'.
The Selkie males shook their heads and rolled their eyes unimpressed with the 'naive' female.

She barely acknowledged what Duke was going on to say until the group of few were upon them both. Quite suddenly Mia felt uncomfortable and her straight back slouched a little. It wasn't so much Echo who was a fairly friendly Pixie that Mia had seen once or twice in the pharmacy and it wasn't the human girl, now Mia knew (presumed) Duke was harmless (from a 2 minute exchange) she certainly didn't see why the female should be a threat. It was infact the third member of this group.

Now Mia had nothing personal against Demons as a race but this one had an added uncanniness to his dark aura. They'd never had anything to do with one another previously- there was no reason for them to and Mia did try to steer clear of individuals who were without a doubt capable of over powering her. Instincts always sought out the dangerous ones as if they carried a bad smell on their person. This bright eyed, devilishly handsome individual sent a rather unpleasant shiver racking up her spine causing her thigh muscles to twich. Quite a bad smell indeed.
Mia gave the human girl a distracted smile but no reply as Duke sneered something. Mia glanced about the lunchroom feeling eyes on them all- particularly from the four male selkies present at the her pod table. Teeth were clenched and shoulders were hunching as they stared over with austere.
She supposed she'd be getting a bollocking later from the lot of them for dwardling around a human male and then getting caught near a demon. It's your own foolish fault they'd say. Glancing back to Duke she hoped he didn't think it was directed at him- she was interested in this plain creature- the first human she'd ever met- he already seemed so hostile she didn't want those selkie brutes making it worse.

Thomas had led the human girl, Abby, along with Echo to all her classes after first period, the day largely uneventful, although many people approached the girl. He had kept his eyes peeled, discreetly, for any fool that would wish to cause problems, and since it was known he was a demon, few ever dared to start things around him. He hadn’t ever fought anyone in his few months at the school, but no one ever really wanted to. A wise choice, wiser still because of what his true identity, which no one knew was. But his face remained calm and pleasant all throughout the day, while Echo and Abby did most of the speaking, with Thomas speaking a little less. Honestly, he wasn’t used to the casual manner in which teens were supposed to speak to each other, and any time he became entwined in conversation, he always spoke as if he were from a different time.

The day was uneventful, despite the constant approaches, except for when that idiot Andrew came loping down the hallway between classes, eyes set on the small human girl. He mentioned he had seen her brother, then stood next to Thomas, asking how the day had been so far, though Andrew’s mind was clearly set on something else. A string of vulgar comments poured from his mouth, directed at Abby, and his eyes wandered constantly, but Thomas let it go on for only a few seconds, before smacking Andrew in the back of the head, sending him sprawling onto the floor. At that time, the Siren girls had walked up, speaking shortly and unclearly to Echo, then winking at Thomas before encircling Abby like vultures to a fresh corpse. He rolled his eyes, familiar with them and their kind, but luckily Echo sent them off shortly.

After a while, filled with many pointless encounters with other curious fools, the trio went to the lunch room. Echo seemed to immediately feel the allure of food, and quickly excused herself, disappearing into the crowds of teens filling the room. Thomas gazed for a second at a couple of kids whose eyes had lingered for too long for his liking, but then he felt Abby’s eyes on his and turned to her. His face showed nothing of what he was doing on the inside, nothing about the silent intimidation he delivered without hardly trying. None of it was directed towards the humans, or to Echo of course, just to idiots that would show off their less human traits. He realized this was the first time the two of them were alone, Echo having had been there all day long, but Abby had started smiling a lot over the day, and she seemed at least a little familiar and comfortable with Thomas now. He doubted she would if she learned he was a demon, and much less if she learned anything beyond that, but mentally shrugging that off, she started speaking in a joking manner, "So everyone in school must be magazine models right? I haven't seen one unattractive person at all today..."

There was really no way for Thomas to answer that question, and luckily she had been joking, so he said with a mysterious smile and a half shrug, “Must be something in the water.” Just as Echo came walking back over and pointing out the human male. Excitedly, Abby pulled Echo onward, and motioned for Thomas to follow, which he did, but then the human girl faltered in her steps and held her head as if in a daze. Thomas moved quickly to her side, ready to catch her if she needed, but his mind had never even paused as he wondered if the cause was medical, or maybe due to some sort of trauma she endured in her past, as she surely had, or was that wizard up to something else now? Thomas had noticed the spell that had been cast over the house the humans stayed in, so he wouldn’t put it past the little fur ball.

Abby recovered and moved on, apologizing for herself, though it was unnecessary, and acted like nothing had happened. But something had, and Thomas saw it. He showed no reaction, simply followed after her, then stood next to her by the table with Duke and Mia looking up to them. Thomas purposely stood close to the selkie girl, he remembered her name, due in large part to the fact that she always seemed to avoid him, and was always wary of his intentions, like he was out to eat her. Ironic, really, considering that both their natural habitats were similar, though Thomas preferred to remain much deeper than any selkie, and only surfaced when hunger took hold. If she put any thought into it, and if she knew what he really was, she should know that a single selkie would never be enough to sate that appetite. But her natural fear or trepidation of him was not unusual. If anything, it was to be expected, a creature of the overworld like her.

But his thoughts were veiled behind a calm expression and a pleasant smile while he examined Duke. Small, possibly malnourished, and lean. His hair was also blue, he didn’t seem that concerned with keeping a low profile as his sister. "Looks like we're quite the popular ones around here don't you think Abby?" Of course, he had felt the eyes burrowing into him. As had Thomas. There were many eyes that would steal quick glances at the now group, but Mia’s ‘pod’ as they called it, had done more than glance. They stared, and it was somewhat annoying.

“Yes, things will probably be this way for a while.” Thomas interjected with a smile still on his face. “We don’t get many of you coming through town.” His eyes glinted, his enjoyment of the situation had risen quite a bit due to Mia’s discomfort. “New kids, that is.” Thomas smiled wider, then bowed his head perhaps a little too formally, “I am Thomas Aquinas, pleased to meet you.” He lifted his head, and his gaze fell for the first time directly on Mia, “And how are you, Mia?”