What have I gotten myself into [Private, invite only]

Although Summer had ridden most of the students of Syne off for some "free, fun-time" for just a few months, that time was slowly ending as the halfway point of the vacation drew to a close. New faces that Yuri had never seen trickled in. Yuri had applied and moved in during the break, so other first years were arriving as well as a few of his seniors as well. It wasn't hard to distinguish either, the first years appeared more foreign and out of place in a way. They were pressed in their uniforms and clean in appearance. The more experienced students seemed much more relaxed, and informal, with a sense of ease that could only be given by someone that calls this place home.

That was not Yuri, a young man with a beanie, that had a tuft of ebony hair purposefully strewn from beneath it, and his black jacket, with the Atlesian crest patched onto his left shoulder. He was not like either of these groups, he felt out of place and formal, but also at ease. Maybe his time at a much more strict combat school made this shift easy for him, but.... being in a school with women was a change, albeit a welcome one.

He postulated on his big leap into this strange place on a park bench in the commons with his feet stretched out and his hands along the back, hiding the scars on his palms. For now, he hoped, it would be enough to simply be prepared for the coming trials.

After wandering around the school for what felt like hours, Gabe was beginning to feel like he'd never actually get to enroll in the school, despite the journey he took to get there. Everybody here knew eachother already and seemed to have instructions on where to go and who to talk to for whatever you need. The reason Gabe didn't quite get this message is because he didn't feel like listening to someone after having a really stressful traveling experience beforehand.

After asking multiple people for help, getting ignored more often than not, the only thing that he seemed to be doing was getting more and more confused. After even more wandering around, he came across some guy who seemed to be alone, someone who wasn't really busy with anything or anyone. It couldn't hurt to ask just one more person for help, right?

"Hey, uh... I have no idea what I'm doing. You got any idea for what I should do to get in this school? I don't even know how to get my own room."

She arrived without much prior warning on school grounds. She walked mostly alone, her only company being her two employees she had brought along to carry her luggage. The girl with white hair let off an unpleasant aura, her posture alongside her deadpan expression and overall demeanor drove away some of the students nearby. They dare not speak of it and go about their business, however.

It wouldn't be long until Zenya found herself lost, moving about the campus with little regard to checking a map. Seeing herself in the predicament, she halted her advance and looked around, as if scoping out a potential victim for whatever crime she may commit. Though, it wouldn't be much a crime.

Zenya overheard the man who spoke up and walked over, listening in to see if any of the information would be vital to her knowledge. After all, she had to make sure that she could relax whenever she needed to, and that would be very soon.

Yuri made an apathetic grunt as his mind adjusted to the shift from absolute silence to genuine conversation. "Huh, oh." he looked up but kept his legs stretched out, albeit now crossed. He glances at the guy that asked him the question, then to the girl before looking at the guy again. He wondered if they were friends. He points to a smaller building a little off the main hall with his left hand without bothering to lift his right hand. "Umm, yeah. The service building right there, as long as you applied and were accepted, then they should have all of your info there."

He was simply a first year as well, but he'd been here for a few weeks now, so he supposed that that made him a bit of an authority for now. He pushed himself into a standing position and dusted himself off with his scarred hands. He just crooked his head towards the building all the way at the other end of the courtyard. "Some people mistake customs for service, so it's probably for the best that I show you." He still spoke in a voice that was characteristically whisper-like, even despite it being his normal speaking voice. Yuri began to start walking down the twisting and weaving paths throughout the gardens toward the service building.

Happy that someone finally decided to help him out, Gabe turned to follow the guy to the service building, noticing the girl that was just standing there watching. Although he had seen quite a few strange people on his way to this school, he couldn't help but feel at least a little bit annoyed with people every now and again. Hoisting up his stuff onto his back, he turned to the girl to say, "You know that's creepy right? Just watching people? I mean you do you, but I'm just saying..."

He wasn't about to let this one person bother him though. His body felt like he gave a warm hug to a moving train, and he wanted to not be awake for at least an hour before he actually had to do something. He also had to make sure his partners were still in fighting condition as an emergency measure, but that had to wait. He still had no idea how anything worked around here, so while he had this guy around, he felt like he should get to know as much as he could about the school.

"So have you been here before? Cuz I'm really new to the whole, 'actually be a member of the community and attend classes' kind of life."

The comment let out by the male did not seem to cross her attention, as she merely shrugged off the direct communication to her without showing any physical signs of doing so, merely remaining the way she was before. While listening, her Scroll that she had let out a low drone.

Zenya took out her scroll and opened it, looking over it as several statistics displayed on it. It looked like some sort of stock exchange as her Employees placed her luggage on the floor. Zenya looked over her shoulders at her employees before looking back at the scroll. Usually, she was petty and would have scolded them for placing her belongings on the ground, but she let it slide, as Zenya turned away from the two, but still remained to listen to them in case they gave any important information.

Yuri thought back to his days at Apollo. "I'm a first year, but I've spent time in settings like this before. Plus..." He paused his speech for the briefest of moments, thinking about the monotonous concept of his living on the school grounds mid-summer with nothing to do but learn about the school. "I moved in a few days ago to get settled."

This was the most he had spoken within a few days, but he thought of it as a bit of a warm-up for getting back into academia. He occasionally glanced back at Zenya, made mildly uncomfortable by being followed by strangers. Instead of bringing it up, he resigned himself to examining the flora for the billionth time as they walked. He occasionally fidgeted with his hands, a habit he had yet to break, but upon realizing his action, he thrust his hands into his jacket and began to pre-emptively dial on his scroll for his weapon locker without pulling it out of his pocket.

"Yeah, well... You know a lot more about this than me. I learned everything I needed to from books and stuff. Never really been to a school before. I'm Gabe, by the way."

He pauses for just a moment after noticing this other person's awkward hand movements. He'd dealt with plenty of shifty people before, so he's been on his guard for anyone that could seem like somewhat of a risk. Discreetly grabbing his weapon, he turns his head to watch him, but it seemed that he wasn't concerned with Gabe, but something else. Looking around again, like some lost child in a shopping mall, he sees the girl that was watching him, still following them. Now he was at least a little bit confused. This person could either be stalking them in the "you're interesting," kind of way, or the "you're dead" kind of way. Gabe puts his hood up, not letting the armor go over his face quite yet.

He turns and says, "Do you uh... need something? If you want to know something you just gotta ask. You know, like talking. Instead of just doing... that."

Zenya looked up from her scroll, closing it as she nodded, closing her eyes as she finally spoke up, her voice authoritative, yet smooth, unwavering, as if showing that she had much confidence in her speaking.

"Yes, I was beginning to question whether or not you would finally address me. I need directions to admissions, I must tell them that I've arrived. To my annoyance, I arrived her late taking a public transit system. They denied me use of my own private transportation..."

She ran a hand through her bangs lightly before flicking it, as it retained its smooth appearance. She spoke in a rather demeaning manner, speaking as if she held more importance than those around her.

"Yuri." Yuri said simply as his introduction. He stopped and looked between the two as Gabe finally addressed this individual. He left his scroll alone for the time being, but he simply left it active in his pocket as a precautionary measure. He waited and listened, slightly hoping that this would eventually become any form of intellectual repartee, but his hopes were dashed as it seemed that this stranger, like Gabe, simply needed guidance to the administration of the academy.

Yuri lifted his beanie and ran his hand through his hair to straighten it out again, before promptly placing it back. He measured up the stranger, and as he dusted off the Atlesian patch on his shoulder he opened his mouth to speak. "Well, we're heading to the student service office now. You're welcome to join us or not." He placed his hands back in his pockets to emphasize how apathetic he was toward the stranger and her mannerisms. "But to whom are we addressing?"

"Yeah, cool. Good to meet you, creepy girl. I just want to sleep, or at least sit down somewhere."

These weren't Gabe's favorite types of people, he preferred a more excitable kind of person. However, it seemed like he'd have a hard time finding other people to talk to, since everyone else has ignored him. Yuri seemed to be a bit more respectable, since the other person thinks she's superior to them. He never could respect people like that, but he'd have to tolerate it in case she becomes a somewhat valuable asset later.

Before turning back around to follow Yuri, he noticed something in the girls hand that she was looking at earlier. Still new to this type of scene, he figured that he'd find out later. His thoughts shifted towards the future. Having no idea if he'd meet anybody else, it seemed like a good idea to know where these two will be after they get everything sorted out.

"Hey, Yuri, creepy girl, what are your majors? Mine's the combat thing, since it seemed to be the most exciting."

Zenya looked at him as he asked the question, and without hesitation, she would begin her explanation:

"I am Zenya Valov, owner of Valov Cutters. I own one of, if not the most, successful jewelers in Atlas, and am recognized as such. I've had to climb my way from a small corner store, with only one jewel for sale; a large cut Diamond I mined myself. Remember my name, and what it means."

Zenya crossed her arms, looking at the other man before narrowing her eyes. "The last thing you want to do is be rude toward me. I may not have a name here just yet, but I will add this experience to my personal collection. Now..."

Zenya uncrossed her arms and began walking. "It's best I take my leave. Until the next time we meet..."

Yuri exhaled through his nose slowly. This person acted quite derisive toward complete strangers, something he had grown to both loathe and be accustomed to, having lived in Atlas his whole life. He thought for a moment and wondered how far she would take a simple jab at her ego. Given, it may be better to ignore her and let her continue, but this woman was grinding his gears especially. Maybe because she was clearly a bit older than the he or Gabe? In any event, he placed his hands above his head and stretched.

"Valov? Valov, Valov, Valov." He tried to recollect from his past, but eventually dropped his hands down in a shrug. "Hmm, sorry. Never heard of the place, and I lived in Atlas my whole life. Must not be that big I guess." He wondered how she would take such a straightforward challenge, or if she might be any different from the others in Atlas. Regardless, he gestured to Gabe to keep following him before tucking his hands into his pockets and walking toward the service building once more, alert that she might be completely insane as well and try something. It wouldn't have been the first time. He mentally apologized for ignoring Gabe's question, and mentally promised to get to it in a few minutes.

Gabe, despite his best efforts to hold it in, couldn't help but laugh aloud after hearing this savage burn.  It was the last thing he expected to hear from Yuri, and he was pretty eager to hear what Zenya's response would be.  Zenya seemed like someone who'd get pretty offended if anyone dared to speak her name in the wrong way, and Gabe loved watching people get what they deserved.  Needless to say, he knew who's side he was on here.

"Man, you're gonna need some ice on that burn!  Actually, come to think of it, I haven't heard that name either.  You sure you're all that great?"

Still, unsure of her temper, Gabe held on to his weapon and kept his hood up.  You know, just in case she's one of those psychos that'll fight anybody who makes her mad.  Despite the risk there was to insulting her, he couldn't help but think about how fun it was to finally get to a new school and start his new life with some pretty decent conflict.

Zenya did not seem surprised, however, she did pause to gaze back over her shoulder at them, looking unfazed by the insults given out by Yuri.

"I did not expect for you to know my name. In my opinion, you didn't look wealthy enough to even buy jewelry. It surprises me that you can even afford the clothes on your back. If you're ever looking for a job, I'd be more than happy to allow you to work in the company's shipping department. Just make sure to clean up before you come for an interview."

Zenya turned back and continued on her way, her employees following silently with her luggage. In Zenya's mind, she truly wasn't upset or disappointed that they did not know their name. For what were two people being ignorant have any impact on her actual success? This was Zenya's reasoning.

Yuri smirked a bit and silently laughed. On one hand, Zenya had kept her composure in the face of a blatant insult, which earned her some respect from him. On the other hand, he was in no way poor, and she had made an insult without fully examining the scene before her. Yuri unzipped his bomber jacket and took it off. As always he had been wearing his Atlesian uniform beneath the jacket, with elegant white coloration only emphasized by its red and blue accents. It was a Kevlar dress vest, truly combining the Atlesian style of formality and might.

He placed his jacket in his duffel bag and glances at Gabe. Yuri had stopped to do this and only this before he kept walking. He mentally placed Zenya on his list of people to keep an eye on. As he began walking he had one more thing to say to Zenya before he moved on. "Good luck at a school for REAL warriors and soldiers, Jeweler."

Still chuckling, Gabe turned and started following Yuri over to the service building again. Then the exhaustion started to kick in again, his luggage and limbs feeling much heavier than before. The 'entertainment' was the only thing distracting him from how long the journey actually was, and how long it's been since he last slept. Thanks to his lack of experience with people and how heavy his jacket felt, it seemed appropriate for Gabe to stop holding up his machete and start dragging it across the floor in an effort to expend less energy. This got him a couple looks from the people around him, but it wasn't too big of a deal to him.

"So, were you going to tell me your major or...?"