A week, before he’d been allowed to go to his standard core classes. They thought they were being subtle, as they carefully watched him to make sure he wasn’t a danger to the other students, but they were Elegant Aliens, not catkin; dexterous though they may be, their stealth skills were woefully lacking. A week, of sitting in that empty classroom, blissfully able to catch up on the readings he’d need to be familiar with for the classes he wasn’t attending— a relaxing week indeed.

Alas, as all things good tended to do, it ended far too soon.

“Ai’er Avyr?” A voice, soft spoken compared to its usual harsh cadence. Almost kind in a sense. “The principal made his judgment.” Instructor Nin stood only a few feet away from him, looking a bit bemused about how she’d been able to sneak up on him. He’d been absorbed in his book, though, so it wasn’t like it was a particular accomplishment. She’d have to have gotten a few feet closer for it to truly count, if they were playing…

Except, he would never play red ribbon tail ever again. He expected the familiar pang of aching sorrow as it washed over him, but… it still hurt, even dulled by time as it was. He wondered if it ever wouldn’t. Even if he succeeded…

Could what was lost ever truly be regained?

Sighing softly to himself he stood, stretching out for a moment before gently closing his book and slipping it into one of his bags. “A favorable judgement, I hope?”

Instructor Nin nodded, sitting down beside him. “I honestly don’t know what took him so long, and I apologize for that. It was obvious from your first class that you aren’t going to maul someone on a whim, and it's been unfair of you to subject you to this.”

“It’s fine.” It wasn’t even the worst he’d experienced personally. A lot of his kind had escaped north after the empire had conquered their lands, and loathe as he was to admit it, he knew he was one of the fortunate amongst them. Most of his fellows wouldn’t have even been able to afford a space in the city. “I understand the caution. Has my schedule been worked out?”

The instructor chuckled. “I’ll have you know that that was almost more difficult than wrestling a concession out of Yuxan. I’m sure they’ll warm up to you after a bit, though.” A roll of the dice, more realistically, if his experiences with the teachers so far was any indication. The Applied Combat instructor was friendly enough, if rather more brutal than he might appreciate, but the Qi Theory instructor had been cold, and the less said about his Guided Study instructor, the better. He’d ended up picking agroherbology, just to spite the man. The look on his face when he’d chosen gardening had been priceless.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

It wasn’t even that bad a pick. When he ended up in the sect, there weren’t an unlimited number of professions to pick from, and Lily was probably going to be a better formations master than he ever would be. That and… he could still all but taste it, on the tip of his tongue, the acrid pill-scent, harsh and floral, and so complex… he shook his head, shaking off the thoughts. A few seconds in a quiet conversation, and he was melancholy already? No, he could be better than that. He would be better than that. “Thank you.” He dipped his head to Instructor Nin respectfully, as she only deserved for everything she’d done for him. “I appreciate your efforts.”

“You’re my student,” she said simply, as if that was the only thing in the world that truly mattered.

Perhaps she was right.

“Here. If you need any help—” She placed a paper gently on the table between them— his schedule, if he understood it right.

“I’ll be fine.” He grasped it with a paw, and strode out into the hallway— and left to his first class of the year. His first class ever, in a so concertedly academic setting. Back in Black Rock Refuge, he’d learnt with the other kittens and from whatever books his parents brought back, and after that, he’d spent most of his time self-studying in order to keep up with his scholarly pursuits while moving between cities.

The other students stayed a healthy distance away from him, which… were it not for why it was happening, it would have been a good thing. It could’ve been worse. When he’d boarded the ship from Fenfung to Xianghua, he’d been all but crushed on every side by panicked refugees, and that hadn’t been a fun experience at all…

Finally, he arrived at his destination. Quad A lower, room 1018, Aurelian Literature and Culture Studies. Steeling himself, he slipped his schedule into a bag and then gently pushed the door open.

Instantly, the conversations inside the room froze. You’d have thought he’d tried to suppress them with his spiritual pressure by the sheer stunned silence as he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

He tried not to let it get to him. The room was nice, at least— a cozy sort of place, a nice carpet towards the front with a bookshelf off to the side, some motivational posters, a relaxing pastel green color of paint, and even a cool plant up at the front besides the instructor’s desk. Following that same sort of cozy vibes, the tables had been split off into little groups, tiny blocks. On one paw, that meant that everyone was in groups, which was a fair bit better than the austere ranks of seating in the elite student’s room.

On the other paw, that meant he’d have to choose one of them, which… yeah. He hoped that none of them held a grudge.