❖ＤisneyＲedux / Ｙaoi / ＯＰＥＮ!

Interest Check. Joining?

Yes!	53.3%	[ 8 ]
Maybe!	33.3%	[ 5 ]
No!	13.3%	[ 2 ]
Total Votes:			[ 15 ]

[BITTER b r a i n]

It wasn't so much that Autumn looked a mess, so much that Autumn looked alone. Most people at least had a small entourage with them, even if it primarily consisted of well-meaning parents or a yappy dog or two. It was very rare to see a student stumbling along on their own on the first day. Toby might have only been going to the academy for a year, but his parents had always encouraged him to come see his brother off. Over the summer he was meant to see his brother off a number of times, to other countries rather than school, but something or other always came up and he was made to go along instead. He wasn't a diplomat, exactly, but being his brother's assistant was still a pretty decent way to spend the summer. He still wished his brother could have travelled with him to school in the morning, but he supposed that all of their other travel over the summer made up for it in some way.

No, it didn't, but he wasn't going to get upset over something that wasn't Ed's fault.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he said, offering out a hand. The bags were on the ground for the moment, so it should be alright. "I hope you don't mind if I call you Autumn, then? Unless you prefer Qui." He really hoped he didn't butcher that. He was slowly acquiring different languages, but he didn't take to them like Edric did. He spoke English well, and was very proficient in mermish, but his attempts at Mandarin, German, and French were all dodgy at best. He was working on them, really, but he found he just couldn't wrap his mouth around the sounds. He could read them and understand them to some extent, but he felt very foolish trying to speak.

While he wasn't very good at pronunciation, he was quite capable of lifting things. He might have had servants who took all his bags in, but that didn't mean he couldn't do it himself when he needed. "It wouldn't be trouble," he insisted, "But if you've got it, then they're all yours. Mind if I walk with you to your room, though? The halls here can be pretty confusing." Toby had learnt this the hard way. The walls of the castle didn't move, exactly, but sometimes it felt like they did. There was enough magic in the castle's construction that he would believe it, had he not known better. He got lost at least ten times in his first two weeks. There was one rather unfortunate incident where he walked into the chamber of a visiting princess while she was changing, which caused about as much scandal as one would image. While Toby was sure that Autumn would get lost a few times on his own, surely creating his own stories, he would rather limit that while the boy was toting around a heavy bag.

The castle had many steps with many landings at the front, and as Toby ascended he spotted some familiar faces standing at the top. Nazer and Leo seemed to spot him at the same time he spotted them. He offered a wave. While he had spoken much to Leo over the summer, it had been a long time since they'd seen each other in person. Toby had wished he could come visit him after his brother's accident, but he wasn't able to get away from his travels with Edric. He would have to make up for it once they got a few moments. As for Nazer, Toby hadn't seen or heard from him all summer, but he also hadn't expected to. They got along as well as they might, but it was mutually understood that their only connection was Leo. They were friends when they were in the same space, but anything beyond that would be uncomfortable overreaching.

"Hello. Did you have a good summer?" he asked when he reached them. He offered Nazer a hand to shake and gave Leo a small hug. He didn't want to make too much of a show- there were already plenty rumours floating around about what exactly it was they did together when left alone, and while the rumours weren't entirely false, he didn't want to fan them. Their relationship wasn't romantic. He didn't want anyone getting the wrong idea. He stepped back and adjusted his vest before turning his attention back to Autumn. "How lucky, we're meeting people before you're even moved in. These are two of my friends, Nazer and Leo. Nazer, Leo, this is Li Qui, or Autumn." If he was going to stop, he might was well be polite and do introductions. They wouldn't stop long- Autumn should get his things packed away before any of the ceremonies started- but there was no harm in a quick hello.


that world is calling so i'm crawling back to sea