Welcome to Gaia! ::

Kaien stretched his legs under his desk, wondering if through all the day's trials he'd managed to instill any sense of the school's values in the new students. He couldn't help but be honest with himself that he was happy the new Administrator arrived. Annabelle Souris had come with excellent references, and was an accomplished healer.

He knew he couldn't continue to rely upon Sebastian's skill. As a Grigori, he was far too dark in his personality to be truly beneficial to the students. Kaien decided that he would have to meet her now that she had established her office.

The walk down the hallway was short, and he knocked politely on the door. "Miss Souris? It's Kaien Sordeau. May I come in?"

At hearing the voice of the Headmaster himself, Annabelle's heart fluttered. Of all people to come, and when her office was in such a state! But, there was no sense in keeping him waiting. Goodness knows it would have taken her ages just to make a clean spot. She rose from her chair, smoothing out her skirt, and nearly sprinted over to the door.
"Coming!" she called. The door was swung open to reveal her smiling face. "Headmaster, what a surprise!" It was evident she was somewhat flustered, as her eyes darting from him to the stacks of books betrayed her insecurity. "Come in, please."

Kaien smiled. "It's just Kaien, and thank you." He cast a glance around the office, and picked up a book lying on a pile. "Van DeCamp's Annotations? I never quite understood his techniques on the stabilization of Realm plants on the Mortal plane. I should think that it wouldn't have been as complicated as he detailed." He flipped through the pages, pausing briefly at an old notation in the margins.

"How have you found your first day at Grove, Miss Souris?"

It was an odd thing, that he had so casually picked up the book as she was ready to apologize for the state of things. She couldn't help but slip in her own comment.
"It's not, really. The way he goes about his process is... well, not utterly ridiculous, but the simple way to assimilate them into this world is simply to love them." Once stated, it seemed like a very silly concept indeed. "But, listen to me go on!" Annabelle gave a bubbly laugh before walking over to her display of mugs and tea cups. "Would you care for some tea? Or biscuits and cookies? And..." Knowing that she was seeming flustered, she had to collect herself before going on. "You may call me Annabelle. Or Anna. Or Belle!" Again, she gave a short, merry laugh, hoping that he wouldn't question her ability to handle herself professionally.

He smiled warmly. "Tea would be lovely, Anna, Thank you." He closed the book gently and set it on an available shelf. "I own one Ficus, and though I can't say I love it, I do occasionally find myself whistling to it." He crossed to her desk, narrowly avoiding another pile, and bent over to take a look at the potted lily on her desk. "This is a lovely specimen." He commented, impressed.

"As long as it receives some sort of special attention..." She took a mug, thinking it more masculine than a delicate teacup. As she did with Sam, she gave him the mug filled with hot water from the dispenser, and presented him with the tea chest of assorted tea packets. Hearing his compliment, she smiled.
"Thank you. It's a gift from my mother... she's terribly worried about me. Oh, but I never answered your question!" She seemed to be talking so much, and getting nowhere. "I've loved this place as soon as I set foot through the gate. It's all so well-kept. I even had the pleasure of welcoming in a student today."

Anna gently closed the box, but couldn't find a proper place to set it down again. She settled for another stack of books wide enough to support it.
"Oh, it went as smoothly as it could. I'm not sure she understood that I am elven, but I'm sure she'll adjust well, especially since I told her the basic rules." Once she finished speaking, a bolt of pain went across her forehead. Her brow furrowed as she winced. "Ah... that was so strange..." Anna said, pressing a finger to her temple.

Kaien noticed her wince. "You're feeling the unfortunate side effect of our Gateway. Recently we've been experiencing ripples in the barrier. Our Gatekeeper can't find the problem, but we've got our most experienced students assisting him." He decided to chance the tea being weak, and took a cautious sip. "For humans, the Ripples cause Nausea and headaches. Nothing too serious, but they are troublesome enough. The students think that it's some sort of virus. Our guests from the Other Realms have been experiencing fluctuations in their powers. "

Anna nodded sagely. "I was afraid of some sort of side effect. But, I won't let that ruin my stay here." Once more, her eyes took on the bright happiness she had so much of, despite the fact that she was developing a dull headache. "How have you been fairing, Kaien?" She tried her best to meet his eye, as it was evident they would become friends of a sort.

"Busy as always, but yet there's always time for enjoying the school." He shifted, leaning slightly against her desk. "I hope you'll be able to get away soon. It does no good to sit in your office all day and miss the sunshine. Have you come often to the Mortal Realms?"

"Only every now and then. I've never had much cause to come. And travel around my hometown has been so perilous lately..." The unrest on the other side was starting to spread. It was enough of an adventure just getting her and all of her things through the gate, or to it, for that matter. But, Anna didn't want to concern the Headmaster. "I'll be sure to get out more here, though. But, as you can see, I've some organizing to do." Anna took up a book from the top of one stack, and set it down with a sigh. "What am I to do with all these?"

Kaien couldn't help but laugh a little. "Pick your favorites, and the rest you can label and put in the library here in the Chateau. That way you can always read them should you wish to, and they'll not clutter your office." Setting down his mug, he gathered a few in his arms, only glancing over titles - some of which he was familiar with and others not. "Let's make a stack of them over here, and your papers can go in this pile." He deposited the books on one corner of her desk and quite literally rolled up his sleeves.

Kaien had always been fairly organized, preferring to limit the amount of clutter he kept in his office to a minimum. An experienced cleaner, he started working on Anna's office before realizing that it might be rude of him to presume she needed help. "Oh, forgive me, perhaps you didn't want help?"

Actually, she had been watching him with a look of amazement and thankfulness. A man who knew how to sort order from chaos was a rare thing in her life indeed.
"Oh, no! I mean, yes, that would be absolutely wonderful!" Another side effect of the realm seemed to be her addled thoughts. Though, perhaps that wasn't the new realm...
Anna took up a few books, and began sorting through everything along with him, giving him a few instructions here and there. Most of the ones she was putting into the library were reference material more than anything else. Others were novels she wasn't particularly attached to.
"I'm afraid I'm such a bibliophile that I couldn't part with any of them," she said apologetically as she lugged a very large dictionary over to the pile. With all the help she was receiving, Anna wanted to show as much gratitude as possible. "If you'd like more tea or a snack, please, don't be afraid to say something."

Kaien leaned to the side, cracking his spine to relieve the cramps he had been getting from bending over. "Ah no. It's fine. And being a bibliophile is excellent, but why not share your collection with others who may appreciate it? The Library in this building is very well tended, I assure you that we keep strict records of everything that goes in." Because there are some things we don't want the human students reading. He thought to himself.

He was enjoying the sheer act of organization. It had been a while since he had such a collection to re-arrange. "However, I'm sure we could send out for some more cabinets and shelves to house those you just can't part with." He laughed as he said the last bit, sending her a knowing wink. He, too, was guilty of loving his books too much to store them away. Most of his collection had found its way to the library, but almost every cabinet in his office was filled with books of some sort.

The wink sent her laughing. She had been forcing herself to part with some of her collection just for the fact that she couldn't keep them in her room.
"I'll be happy to share with the students. I can't thank you enough for helping me get through all of this..." Anna tucked a stray lock of sandy brown hair behind her pointed ear as she, too, stretched. "Now students will be able to see me from across my desk."

"That is most helpful. They could be rolling their eyes at you and you would never know it!" Kaien could hear the hour bell ringing in the distance. "Ah. It seems as if our task has taken a good portion of the day. I will thank you for the tea, but I really must be leaving." The check up had gone better than expected. He was certain that she would acclimate to the School.

Before rolling his sleeves back down and re-tying his tie, he held out his hand for her to shake. "It has been a pleasure meeting you, Anna. Please, if you have any concerns or free time my office is only just three doors down the hall."

"Of course, I'd be honored to pay a visit when I can." Anna took his hand for a light shake before going to the door to open it for him. "Thank you, Kaien. And take care of yourself." Another smile crept across her face. It seemed she was incapable of feeling anything other than happiness or gratitude, and she sincerely hoped it didn't aggravate him. Her chin-up attitude had earned her some criticism in the past.

She was a bit tired after all the sorting, but nevertheless, she went to the door with a smile. It was a pleasant surprise that this student was a boy, though she wasn't sure how to accommodate the needs of a young man.
"Yes, hello. Please, come in." This time she could actually direct him to an empty chair uncluttered by the sorted books.

"Yes, I am. It's a pleasure to welcome you to the Academy, Alexander. Do you have a preference to what I may call you?" she asked at the end, remembering how Sam had not taken kindly to her own name.

He seemed so... sheepish? Annabelle wasn't sure how to read him. Perhaps some kind of past would be revealed in his letter.
"May I see your letter of acceptance, Alex? Then we can start sorting out everything for your stay here." As she said so, she took her seat across from him on the other side of the desk, enjoying the fact that she now had one to use.

"Hm... right." She didn't have any student files just yet a she was so new. "Well, it's a pleasure to have you with us. But, there are a few rules. Please stay away from Keystone, as the students there enjoy their privacy. Also, please stray from the Maple dorm. The young women there also enjoy being able to walk around and not worry about the prying eyes of a male." Anna giggled at that last part. She remembered when she was dorming for a bit back in the other realm, and how the girls would sometimes walk around in their towels and nothing but.

"The Gatehouse. Don't ever go inside it, or near it, if you can help. It's for your own safety. And..." A small hand fished around inside one of her drawers for his key. "You'll be staying in room 106 in the Oak dorms." Anna flashed him a cheerful smile before tucking a bit of hair behind her pointed ear out of habit.

The only awkward bit of that was the wink. Annabelle was certainly older than him, and any advances by a student were forbidden.
"Well... fantasy will be all around you here," she said as sweetly as she could without ruining the surprises in store. "And no, everyone has their own room here. It's an exclusive place. So, please, make yourself at home without any permanent changes to the dorm and work hard!"