Unexpected Acquaintance (Rem)

[August Swan]

It had been a quiet day so far, and August had slipped out of her last class of the afternoon and snuck off to the library, where she pulled out her new copy of Mark of Athena in a soft, plushy seat near the entrance to the library. It was one of her favorite places to relax - it was comfortable, there wasn't much noise, and people hardly ever bothered her. It didn't take long for her to settle in and open the book, almost immediately being sucked into the pages and whisked off to another land.

She was all bundled up in layers of shirts and jackets and scarves, being prone to getting cold when the rainy season started. Her auburn hair was tied back in a side braid, with the top portion of it covering part of the right side of her face. Tucked into the chair as she was, she didn't expect anyone to approach her. She did, however, glance up as the library door opened. It wasn't more than a peek, but she was always curious to see who actually used the library - not many students did.

[Remington Flannery]

Rem was wandering through the school. He had just gotten out of classes for the day and was hoping to find food somewhere. He had only been at Hammel for about a week and still wasn’t quite sure where everything was, but that didn’t usually bother him. He didn’t mind taking things as they came so he had spent most of the week wandering around until he happened on the places he wanted to be. This time though, his stomach demanded a faster way.

As he walked he saw the library and decided to go in and find out where the cafeteria was. Just inside a sweet looking girl sat reading. A part of him wanted to let her be, she looked so comfortable with her book. However, his stomach was growling loudly and he needed directions to the cafeteria, and she was rather cute so if needing directions gave him an excuse to chat with such a pretty girl, well then…so be it.

He walked up to her “Hey there” he said getting her attention, and instantly feeling bad as he watched her tear her eyes from the page “sorry to interrupt, that must be a good book. I promise I’ll leave you to it in just a second, but would you mind if I ask a quick question? I’m Rem by the way.”

[August Swan]

Lord have mercy, he was gorgeous. August swallowed, glancing down at her book and hoping he hadn't caught her peek. After a few moments, though, she felt him start to approach her, and wondered if he was about to call her out on it. Oh God no, I don't want to shift, not right now... Her thoughts were slightly panicked, and she felt her cheeks flush, even as she prepared for the normal change to happen. It was only a matter of time if he really was coming to confront her.

His greeting, however, had her looking up again. It was regular, and she immediately hoped he had some other reason to talk to her. "H-hey," she replied, letting her hair cover a good portion of her face to hopefully hide her blush. She glanced down at her book as he mentioned it, offering a nervous nod. She didn't say anything, though, until he asked his question. "Oh, uh, yeah, um, I don't m-mind." He wanted to ask her something? She wondered why he had chosen her. Maybe she had just been there, and he was asking out of convenience. And he said his name was Rem. Rem. She would remember that. She managed to offer him a very small, quick smile, replying,"August. Um, I'm August."

And August was feeling her skin begin to tingle, a sure sign that she was about to change. However, as the familiar feeling of shifting cells ran over her, she noticed that her hair was still red, and her skin was still the same color, and all of her other features felt the same. It was like.... She had tried to change, but the result was her natural look. That had never happened before. There had been a couple times, like when she met Odion, that her ability simply didn't do anything. Maybe she had just imagined it, and Rem was also gay, like Odion? Whatever the case, she tried to make it look like she wasn't as startled as she was.

[Remington Flannery]

The girl had only glanced up at him for a second at first, and she looked nervous. Rem felt especially bad for interrupting her now – he had had no intention of making such a beautiful girl anxious. Although he did have to admit she was adorable as the blush reddened her face. And then her smile, though it didn’t last long, completed the picture. He repeated her name in his head, shouldn’t be too hard to remember, the pretty girl with the pretty name, August.

Rem noticed that she looked a little confused and surprised by something, he hoped he wasn’t making her too uncomfortable. He decided to sit down so that he wouldn’t be standing so tall above her, hoping maybe that would help ease her. He set his books down on the table and sat down in the chair next to hers and turned to face her. “Well I’m new here and I haven’t figured out exactly where everything is yet, you wouldn’t be able to tell me how to get the cafeteria, would you?”

[August Swan]

August continued to ponder over the weird feeling as the boy sat beside her, and she closed the cover of her book, feeling like it was rude to keep it open since he was now at her level. It did help, just a little, since he was no longer towering over her, but she was still extremely self-conscious because he was just so... Pretty. She watched him set his books down, and got her first glimpse of his.... Back. Or rather, where she would have seen his back if he didn't have the most beautiful crimson wings she had ever seen. Her eyes widened, and she let out a small, involuntary gasp. Wings! She knew about Ravyn and Belle, two girls at Hammel that also had that ability, but seeing a very built teenage boy with them, not to mention in that color, was a whole new experience. "Y-Your wings are amazing," she managed to say, before she looked at the floor in embarrassment. "I mean, th-they're just... Wow." Way to be articulate. She was so tongue-tied!

She fiddled with her fingers, looking up once more as he asked her a question. At least she hadn't scared him off yet with her awkwardness. "Oh," she murmured, blinking. "Y-yeah, I know where it is. Um, it's kind of hard to explain though..." She trailed off. The cafeteria wasn't too hard to get to, but it was some distance from the library, and she wasn't sure she could tell him how to get there. But she wasn't quite comfortable getting up and showing him either.

[Remington Flannery]

This wasn’t the first time someone had reacted so obviously to Rem’s wings, but it always surprised him anyways. He had shown his back to the pretty girl without even thinking about it as he sat down and as he heard her gasp he remembered the affect they tended to have on people. He flashed a smile at August and tried to brush off her compliments as quickly as possible, “Oh thanks, yeah, they uh…came that way.” For one thing he could tell she was flustered and he didn’t want to make her any more uncomfortable than she already was, and for another, he didn’t really think that he or his wings were anything special.

Rem hesitated before responding to August’s answer. He knew what he wanted to ask but he didn’t want to risk making the poor girl any more anxious as he watched her fidget already. Also, he had promised to leave her alone with her book, but she could always say no and he would go right ahead and leave her as he had said. He decided he might as well ask, and running his hand through the side of his hair he said as casually as possible “Well…you wouldn’t want to show me the way, would you? I mean if you’d rather keep reading I understand…I’ll get you something for your troubles though, maybe we could have lunch together?” He hoped he wasn’t pushing it too far; he didn’t want to bother her or make her uncomfortable…but he also didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to spend more time with the adorable girl.

[August Swan]

The smile that the boy sent to August made her stomach go wild with butterflies, but she managed to smile in return. Her body felt normal now, without the risk of feeling like she was going to change. No, he must not be interested in girls, she assumed. It made her feel a bit more comfortable, even if she was a little disappointed. Not that she would ever end up with someone so gorgeous in a million years, but... One could dream. "I would l-love to have wings," she murmured quietly, unable to stop herself from gazing at them for a while longer. She then averted her eyes, feeling rude. "Sorry. I j-just... really pretty." She felt her cheeks heat up. Guys probably didn't appreciate being called pretty.

She glanced up again as movement caught her eye when he brushed a hand through his hair. Her eyes widened at his question, and she instinctively tucked her book closer to her chest, as though it could protect her from embarrassing herself further. Show him... The way? And not only that, but... But have lunch with him? Her head was spinning, and for a moment, she couldn't think of how to answer him. This entire situation was just sort of surreal. Finally,"Y-yeah, I mean, I can show you," she told him, sort of surprised at her own answer. Well, it wasn't like she was going to turn him down! That would just be rude. "But I mean, yo-you don't have to do that," she added about the offer of lunch. "It's no problem, really. But, I guess, if you wanted..." she trailed off. She really had no idea what to say, and the idea of having lunch with a boy both terrified and excited her. "I am kinda hungry."

[Remington Flannery]

“Uh… thanks I guess. I mean yeah, having wings can be fun…” Rem said in response to August’s remarks, he decided to take pretty as a compliment even if it sounded a bit girly…there were worse things she could have said.

He watched her reactions closely hoping that he hadn’t made her too uncomfortable by asking. Despite his usually calm demeanor he felt himself getting a little anxious as he waited and wiped his palms on the sides of his jeans. Normally he wouldn’t have cared but something about this girl had him more concerned than he could really remember being. He didn’t understand it, sure she was stunningly cute but hadn’t he met plenty of pretty girls before?

“Oh Great thanks!” He said with a sigh of relief. “If you’re hungry then that settles it, let me get you lunch, it’s the least I can do after disrupting you when you were so happily lost in that book of yours.” At the idea of having lunch with her he felt a rush of happiness like he had only had before while flying or horseback riding. He really didn’t understand what was happening, first nervous and now almost giddy, what was it about this girl? He wondered briefly if maybe her power was some sort of alluring capability, but she seemed too innocent for that.

Turning aside Rem stood and picked his books back up and started walking towards the door, taking the moment to make sure his face wasn’t betraying the way he was feeling. Doing his best to look and sound cool and collected he turned to face her as he reached for the door. “Which way is it then? After you,” He said holding the door open and letting her pass through ahead of him.

[August Swan]

August heard the sort of embarrassment in Rem's voice as he replied to her compliment, and felt bad. She hadn't meant to make him feel awkward.

Still, she managed to smile at his enthusiasm to her answer. Maybe this wouldn't be as scary as she thought. "It's okay, r-really. I probably spend too much time lost in b-books anyway," she replied honestly. It was true, her social life consisted mostly of interacting with fictional characters; they were better than most real people, anyway. But maybe not Rem. She already had a good feeling about him. And it really helped that she wasn't changing around him.

She stood quietly and followed him to the door, keeping the book tucked firmly against her chest. She was too self-conscious to look too closely at his face, so even if he had been betraying what he was feeling there, she would have no idea. "Oh, um, this way," she said, turning to the left. She tapped her fingers against the cover of the book, trying to think of how to break the silence. "So you're n-new to Hammel then?" she asked, questioning the obvious. "W... Where are you from?" They turned a corner, passing by a group of students. August automatically moved to the opposite side of the hall from them, keeping as much distance as possible. You never knew when someone would give you an odd look that would set off your abilities.

[Remington Flannery]

"I'm sure that's not true, you can't spend too much time on something as long as it's what you want to be doing." Rem said as he walked to the door. He had always believed that people should do whatever it is that makes them happy, and not worry about the rest…although he was glad that she was willing to take the break and join him for lunch.


Rem followed August out of the library and caught up to walk alongside her. "Yeah I am, I only got here last week. And actually I transferred from Eisai gakkō in Japan, but I'm from Colorado originally." Rem had lost track of the number of times he had been asked that in the past week, and everyone got confused when he told them he was from Japan so he decided to mention his childhood home as well.


"How about you?" He asked and moved out of her way as she made her way to the wall. He continued to follow her wondering why she had seemed so intent on avoiding the other students. He looked back over his shoulder trying to see if he recognized any of them, though that was unlikely given that he didn't really know hardly anyone yet.

[August Swan]

August glanced over at Rem, letting a curtain of hair fall over the side of her face to hide her smile at his comment. "Sometimes I th-think it's just easier to get sucked into a fantasy world instead of dealing with reality," she admitted quietly. She immediately blushed again, realizing how silly she must sound. She ran a hand through her hair, still slightly surprised at the fact that it was still red.

She nodded at his explanation, eyes widening at the fact that he had come from Japan. "That's s-so cool," she murmured in reply, letting her gaze rise once more from the ground to look at him before dropping again. "What's it like at the Japanese school?" She knew about the other meta schools, of course, but had never been to them herself.

"Oh, um, I'm from Amarillo, Texas," she replied; he could probably tell she was from the south, considering her accent. "M-my ability manifested about three years ago. So I've been here for some time." It seemed longer than it had been, just because of her lack of social interaction in general, and her constant anxiety of changing around other people. She didn't want to tell Rem what her ability was, because it was embarrassing to explain.

"Um, just a few more turns and we'll be there," she told him, passing around another corner and through another hall before arriving at the door. "And here w-we are!" The area was mildly busy; it wasn't lunchtime, so students were just coming and going on their own time at the moment.

[Remington Flannery]

“Sometimes I find it easier to stay up in the clouds instead of staying grounded in reality, so I guess it’s not that different.” Rem said to reassure her. Her motion drew his attention and he couldn’t believe how pretty her hair was as it fell back into place around her face.

“I suppose so…It didn’t seem all that special I guess. I mean it was weird because even after five years there I never learned much Japanese so I didn’t understand everyone but other than that it was a lot like Hammel from what I can tell.”

He was not surprised at all to hear that she was from Texas, he probably would have guessed so anyways because of that adorable accent. “That sounds nice! What was it like in Texas?” He wondered what her ability could be but knew it was too rude to ask. It was a little weird being a flyer, everyone automatically knew exactly what his ability was but for most of the others they could keep it hidden.

Rem started to recognize the hallways as they got closer to the cafeteria. “Thank you so much!” he said heading towards the food, “what do you want?” He let August go ahead of him and got himself some pizza and water. After paying for the both of them he carried their food and led her to a table near the window. Setting down their trays he pulled out her chair before taking his own seat – an old habit he’d picked up from his grandfather.

[August Swan]

"I bet it's amazing to fly," August murmured, shooting a shy look his way. "I-I probably wouldn't want to leave either." She tried to imagine having a wonderful power, like wings, and held back a sigh. What she would do to have a different ability.

She was interested to learn that the Japanese meta-school wasn't much different from Hammel; but then again, what had she really expected? They were all at these schools for the same reason. "Five years? Wow," she breathed. August wondered how old he was - he must have manifested pretty young, she didn't think he was anymore than a year or so older than her.

The question about her home state immediately brought a fog over her eyes as she thought back on the days when everything was simple. "Oh, it's amazing there," she replied quietly. "It's really warm, unlike here, and my family is still there. My horses, too." She missed horseback riding, badly. The memories of her past life were enough of a distraction for her to not even realize she hadn't stammered.

"Oh, n-no problem!" she replied, letting another smile cross her face at Rem's enthusiasm. "Um..." She looked over the food offered, before settling on a nice-looking Caesar salad. "That looks good." She didn't even have time to argue when he paid for her - she had plenty of money, too, since her parents gave her a frequent allowance. She would have to pay him back, somehow. She followed him shyly over to where he was going, eyes widening as he pulled out her seat for her. "Th-thank you," she said, slowly taking a seat and trying to process that a guy had been nice enough to pull out a seat for her. It may have been a small gesture, but it meant a lot to her. Taking her tray, she began eating, surprised that she was almost wishing she had changed - she could almost see herself wanting to be in a relationship with a guy like Rem, if he was as genuine as he seemed.