The gates of the Greywood School were ahead, just outside the city, surrounded by the Greywood that gave it its name.  A new year of instruction was starting, and the students were approaching...

Karine looked the place over as she went. She'd never been this close to a castle before.

There were tall walls surrounding it, but a lot of the work on them was clearly decorative-- this wasn't a castle that had been in wars.  The gates stood open, and many students were around.  The vast majority were human, of course.  Many smaller buildings were inside the walls, but she was going to the main keep.

Giulia had been flying to the school-- it was much faster than walking, with what some of the roads were like, and her family hadn't been eager to spare a horse large enough to carry her... especially since she didn't need one.

She landed outside the walls, though, and approached on foot.  People didn't always react well to a dragon landing in their lands from the air.  She could show the colors of her shield on the ground.

"Interesting..." a voice behind Giulla said.

Karine keep walking towards it. She did feel quite out of place here.

Giulia turned and looked.

"Interesting in what way?" she asked.  "And whom do I have the honor of addressing...?"

"...What on earth is that doing here?" came a voice from nearby.

There was a tall boy behind you, dressed it black robes and wearing glasses. He was carrying some sort of tome with him as he looked you up and done.

"You don't appear to be beastfolk and are not a goblin either."

Karine looked over at what was making the noise.

"That is true," said Giulia.  "I am the dragon Giulia degli Adragna.  And you are...?"

It was rather rude of him to ignore that part...

It appeared to be a young man, well-dressed, with glasses and a large number of pockets and pouches on his person.  He was looking at her with a distinct air of contempt.

The boy flipped a couple more pages and then looked up from his book.

"I am Theodore Bruin."

Karine started to walk over to the boy.

"Do you have something to say to me?"

"And another student here, I presume," said Giulia.  "Did you have anything else you were going to ask?  You might as well get it over with."

The young man looked her over, and considered the question.

"Not particularly," he said.  "Don't disgrace the school, if you can manage that."

"You are of a humanoid species I have not encountered before and that is fascinating," Theodore said.

Karine did likewise.

"I have dealt with many humans like you, so I will say the same."

"Yes, I suppose many haven't met dragons," said Giulia.  "If you meet another, in the future, consider working on your manners, or you may be eaten."

He stared at her for a moment, and then gave a snorting laugh.

"Well," he said.  "You have some wits, at least.  Better than I thought.  I suppose we'll all see how you do."

With that, he walked off.

"Hmm. You are most likely correct. Could you teach me the ways of your people?" Theodore asked.

"Humans...," Karine muttered as she kept walking.

"Not very well," said Giulia.  "I was, as my name implies, raised among humans.  I should, in your position, also take care with how you approach gentry like the Adragna.  They're quick to take offense..."

Still, it seemed as if he meant well.

"...but that's more important with dragons," she continued.  "Don't take their possessions, and treat them with great respect.  There are very few of Mother Tiamat's children in the world, and I am probably the smallest one you will meet.  We take our nature from the things that surround us when we hatch.  Most are wild, proud and hungry."

"Pardon," said a voice.  Male.  Deep.  Soft.  "Are you, by any chance, acquainted with the great Gregor Otlinesti?"

You can see Theodore nodding as you speak, writing it down in his tome.

"I do," Karine said.

"...rather the devout scholar, aren't you?" she said.  "I'm surprised to find you here.  Surely you'd be better off in an ivory tower?"

A rather large human man in simple clothes grinned at her.

"Isn't he amazing?  I consider him something of an idol, at least in combat.  Although combat is not, despite my size, my strongest skill."

"They do not get first hand experience," Theodore said.

This is very awkward, Karine thought.

"I-I'll let him know the next time I see him," she said with an awkward smile.

"Well, true enough," said Giulia.  "I imagine that you'll get it quickly enough.  I hope you're a fast learner, though."

...of social skills, in particular.

"Well, the school's likely to keep both of us too busy for that, I fear," he said. "I'm Bern, a humble scholar of herbs who's become something of a healer.  May I ask your name?"

"I will wish to speak with you more later," Theodore said. "I see that there are more non-humans around."

"I'm Karine," Karine said. "Good to meet you."

Ah, wonderful.

Then again, it could be worse.  At least his questions would probably be genuine, and not intended as insulting.

"All right," said Giulia.  "I suppose I'll see you later, then."

Now, which was was her room...?

"And likewise!" said Bern.  "Are you yourself a warrior, or do you have another specialty?"

There was a group of people around what appeared to be some sort of billboard.

"I suppose you could call me a warrior," Karine said. "It's interesting that one of your size went for healing. THough I suppose you'd be harder to put down than most healers."

Giuliana went to investigate.

"I  would, at that!" Bern laughed.  "But I was raised without such training, and must learn it now.  And I am a gifted healer-- no need to turn my back on it."

"Ah, good. I'm rooming with one of the Adragna. It's a relief with so many commoners and beastfold running around," a young woman said.

"One could always learn to fight on their own," Karine said. "Though that is like learning to swim after being thrown in the middle of the ocean."

"I suppose it would be," said Bern.  "But here I am, at a school where, soon enough, I will be trained in such things."

"Well, that's a blessing for you," said Giulia.  This was a bad sign, but she did want to relish this one moment.

"...So that makes you Marigold Rosa de Gorgon, then?"

"Ah, it is a pleasure to meet you," Marigold said as she turned around before her eyes went wide and she went silent.

"What will you be training with?" Karine asked.

"Probably something simple, to use my strength," he said.  "A big staff, perhaps, or a large hammer or mace."

Yes, that was it.  There was the moment.  She'd encountered it so many times.  It mostly didn't hurt now, and it was, at least, amusing.

"Likewise," said Giulia.  "I hope we will learn many things from each other."

"O-of course. Are you from the Sapphire Coast Adragnas?" Marigold asked.

"I'm looking forward to it then," Karine said with a smile. "It doesn't look like i will have many sparring partners. It looks like I would break most of the humans here."

"Well, you might still break me a bit," said Bern, "but I'll give it a shot!  I could stand to toughen up a bit anyway."

"Yes," said Giulia.  "...to be fair, the Adragna family fostered me, which is why I am degli Adragna, rather than Adragna."

"Ah, yes. My mistake for not seeing it," Marigold said. "Still, it's good that you have a noble background. More than the rest of the commoners they're letting in these days."

Karine laughed.

"We should head to a tavern once I find out where I'll be staying."

"Then we shall," said Bern, "and be friends, I hope."

Giulia raised an eyebrow at this, but chose to leave it alone.

"So what's your specialty?" she asked.  "I am, of course, a knight, but I wield the strength of the storm as well as a blade."

"Well, I use the blade and magic," Marigold said. "Two rather difficult fields."

"Certainly, though hopefully you can keep up," Karine said.

"In a fight?  I doubt it," he said.  "But drinking?  I might manage a drink or two, I suppose..."

Giulia nodded.  Of course she needed to brag about how hard they were... Well, they were challenging fields, in general.

"What kind of magic, then?" she asked.

"Ice magic of course. There are few that can stand up to the cold," Marigold said.

"Not much of a tolerance for drink?" Karine asked. "Especially with you size, that is certainly a funny image."

"No, no," he laughed.  "Just an understatement.  I can handle my drink well enough."

"Useful," said Giulia.  "Few enough stand up to a storm, as well."

"So, that's your magic then?" Marigold asked. "Unexpected."

"So, where would I find out where I'm rooming?" Karine asked.

"Dragons are... varied," said Giulia.  "Our power is individual.  Fire is common, but many others exist, from what I know."

"I believe that there's a bulletin board over there," said Bern.

"You seem pretty small for a dragon," Marigold said.

"Stay here, I'm going to check," Karine said as she headed over.

Giulia raised an eyebrow.

"...you really can't help yourself, can you?" she said.  "Well.  I am smaller than most, I suppose, but I'm also possibly the youngest known dragon."

It appeared that she was to live with someone named Cil... Bern... and.  Wonderful.  Athost.

It was Marigold's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"What did you mean with that?"

Karine went to drop off her bag in the room before heading back to Bern.

"What did you learn?" Bern asked.

"You're here," said Giulia.  "You and I, now we are here to be adventurers, to face the dangers of the world with our strength, our cunning, our skill.  So are all of the others.  Words to mark yourself as superior, others as inferior... are words.  We were raised in noble families.  What of it?  If you are strong, you'll show it here.  If others are weak, they'll show it here.  You're struggling to show that you're superior to everyone else here with your words... and it doesn't matter.  This is the real test.  Your place in this school, in this world, is in what you do.  You and I, we have an advantage, I suppose, in the strength our families gave us, in the tutors we had, the better weapons we possess, but we are burdened by how our actions reflect on our families, as well, and I think that's a heavier burden than the strength they gave us.

"...now is the time to do, not speak.  How hard did a commoner have to fight to get here?  How strong are they?  Very strong, I should think.  You should consider that.  We're fighting alongside them now."

Marigold turned sharply around and walked off.

"It looks as though we'll be roommates," Karine said.

"Ah, then we'll get along together well," said Bern.  "And perhaps someday, I'll meet Gregor Otlinesti for that reason as well..."

Well.  That wasn't a good sign, but Giulia, in honor, couldn't let that... venom... continue unchallenged.

She looked to see who else she would be living with.

Beyond the young noble lady who left in a huff and the strange young man at the gate, there was one "Gregory Samson" who you haven't met yet.

"There was someone named Cil on the list, Do you know who they are?" Karine said, trying to ignore the comment or at least not show too much irritation.

...Wonderful.  Well, maybe she'd get along better with the last one?  It wasn't a good sign, as teams went, to have this much drama.

She went to go look for her quarters.  That was probably for the best.

"No," said Bern.  "Shall we go look at our quarters and hope to learn?"

"Might as well," Karine said.