Welcome to Gaia! ::

As he plopped down in the classroom for the next session, Thackery looked a bit exhausted. He'd had some trouble sleeping the previous night, clutching his eyephone close to his chest and waiting (im)patiently for each text to send and receive and send and receive all over again.

Regardless, he managed to pay attention to Ylaria better than he had before, intrigued by the powers granted by the gems that she discussed. Why couldn't all jewelry be that way? It was such a fantastic concept, decking oneself out in trinkets and accessories that made you more than visually awesome!

When the box of gemstones came around to him, he stared down at the contents with overflowing excitement. Couldn't he just take them all? Really, didn't he deserve them all? His greedy hand hovered over the glimmering pile, and he reached to snatch up a handful, pausing only when he caught sight of the necklace's framework. There was no room for this entire box full of stones. And wasn't there that saying...something about moderation...beauty in simplicity...oh, who knew.

Frowning in determination, he fished out a ruby, examining it in the flickering light as he held it up in front of him. Pretty and red with the property of devotion. It reminded him of Ash...and not just because he'd been busy missing him terribly over the past few days. It only made sense, then, that the jewel that sat beside it was amethyst. Purple, his favorite color! If he were a shiny stone, he imagined he would probably be something like amethyst. Maybe temperance didn't quite fit, whatever that meant, but he was sure that he wouldn't have to rely on the Death Clan Shinies magic forever.

Hel usually would have been dismayed to be told that it needed to be better, but the fact that Ylaria was as kind to look it over without any scorn or condescension made the reaper feel really good about it. A small smile pulled at her lips and she nodded her head as she took it back. “Ah, I see what you mean. I did not take the whole band into consideration as well. I shall go work on it now. Thank you.” She dipped her head a bit in gratitude, and returned to her seat to tweak the foundation for the gem.

Still, there were those warm fuzzies at being complimented, that also made the ghoul want to try and solve this problem to further impress.

Yay yay! Okay she was here. Holding out the ring at her he pointed to the leaf and vine motif. "Are these um- acceptable symbols? Or- are they bad? Wait are there special horseman symbols? Should I have done those?"

His ear wings hung back a bit as he sunk slightly into his seat. "Sorry, sorry. I get excited. And ask questions. A lot of them." A smile. "I am trying to not be so loud."

"We do have our own motifs. Many, in fact. You may notice patterns and images used more frequently than others while visiting portions of the island, just like your own school's colors and insignia. If you're truly interested, I would suggest setting aside time for exploration." Ylaria could think of no better way for someone with very little knowledge of their clan and traditions to learn, starting from the basics, working off of what their own eyes could find. "Your symbols, however, are not "bad", but are not what I would consider particularly reflective of our clan. This is not "bad" either. I presume that they are reflective to you - special to you - and that is of greater importance."

She completely ignored his apology and explanation; he seemed to understand the flaws in his actions. No need to reiterate.

When their time was up, they were each instructed to place the jewelry back into the pouch that contained their kit, where they would safely await the next day's work. Ylaria once again collected each one of them in order, locking them back in the latched box, before excusing them from the session.

Yesterday seemed to go by even quicker than the day before, though that didn't mean he'd enjoyed it any less. Surprisingly enough it seemed that Julian was actually making friends on his own. Sin and Cora's friendship had almost seemed forced on him, not that he was complaining. Tahki was a friend he made on his own, but this was the first time he felt like he wasn't having problems doing it. Well, he had been a little embarrassed with Lumi, but he seemed to be getting along with Kettil and Endzela.

This third class had him even more excited. What would they be doing today if they had completed their jewelry?
He came in, took his seat and received his kit, eagerly awaiting the instructor to begin.
He put the necklace on when he was told, the dark sapphire hanging a fair bit higher than the silver talon.
And sprung to his feet when Ylaria released the shades upon them. They looked like the things he'd faced in the cavern, when he'd worn the amethyst ring. This would be his first real battle after completing his Y1 exams, he hoped it would set a good start.

Julian's HP :: 40 - 5 = 35
Opponent's HP :: 25 - 0 = 25
Gem Effect :: 2/2 (Success Roll was 7)

Aurian showed up bright and early for the next day's class. She'd been quite sad to hand her finished brooch back at the end of yesterday's lesson. Not that there was anyone to show it off to who hadn't already been in the class, but Aurian kind of wanted to just wear it around. It was like Mai had said, they were very stylish accessories.

So she was overjoyed when Ylaria handed their jewelry back. The instruction to put it on sent a jolt through Aurian. Oh. Oh. She remembered what wearing a sapphire brooch in the spelunking caves had done. Aurian jabbed herself with the pin as she tried to put on her brooch, so excited that she couldn't stop bouncing in place. Slightly more tender in a certain area, Aurian snapped to attention once the clasp was finally secure, brooch proudly displayed on the top left of her corset.

"Don't be afraid," Ylaria said, but fear was the last thing that Aurian was feeling. Adrenaline spiked, particularly when the box was opened and shadow monsters of some kind leapt out.

Aurian's shade was tall, towering over her, but in the end it was a shadow monster and Aurian couldn't help but smile up at it. She'd still kick its a**, of course, but couldn't be afraid of something that felt so familiar.

"Alright, let's see what these gems can do," she said with a sharp grin. One form of playtime had come to end, and another one started. Oh yes, Aurian was looking forward to playing. To Ylaria, she called, "You don't mind if those of us with weapons call them for this, do you?"