Welcome to Gaia! ::

• What do you look like? Height, weight, hair color?

It seems so odd to be asked that when you’re looking at me right now. It’s quite alright though, I can understand that it’s really ‘part of the whole process’ as they say. Well, to give you an idea I am six foot eight inches, above the average for normal humans I believe. At least I don’t have to dodge the tops of doors. As for my weight, I guess I am about one hundred and sixty, since most of that is bone mass and muscle mass. I am a bit lanky though, but luckily I’m not one of those twig people! My hair color changes throughout the day. It could be anywhere from jet black to white with black streaks or black with silver streaks. I would say my hair is the equivalent to sunsets. Each time you look at it there is a subtle change, but that’s what makes it so beautiful at the same time. Excuse me for sounding a bit egotistical though.

• What do you like/dislike about how you look?
Ironically, I dislike my hair changing colors a lot. Even though I’m happy I have it, I dislike it because often I can be mistaken for another person. I also dislike my height. Most of the males keep away from me due to my stature. However, I am blessed to be called ‘handsome’ by many females. It seems though that they like to follow me and, oh what is it called, flirt? I believe the word is flirt. I also like my ears and my tail. I don’t have human ears if you haven’t noticed. My ears allow me to hear and sense many things. I wish I could tell you what exactly my ears do, but even I’m discovering that. I’m on a journey to find out who I really am, and that leads me to my final things that I both like and dislike. I like what I am because I know that I am a different thing from those other neko, or cat, people. I dislike what I am because I’m alone in my own species. And until I find out more, I’ll keep on disliking what I am.

• How old are you? How do you feel about being your current age?
I am eighteen years of age. How do I feel? About what, my age? I’m happy to be alive! I could be suffering from cancer or could have been murdered in my past years, and you ask that question as if it is a curse! When all your life you have lived lies and lived in danger without knowing, you tend to thank your gods that you are where you are. Now, this isn’t to say I am a religious person. In fact, it’s one of those things that I’m searching for as well. I still need guidance to find my true origins, and I am still eighteen. I’m still going to be a stupid naïve boy on a quest to become a man, and I haven’t fulfilled that just yet.

• How do you spend most of your days?
Well, I usually study and train quite a bit, but this semester I have off except for two of my classes. I’ve been out socializing a lot. I met this one lovely lady but have not seen her since then. I hope to actually have some friends of my own. I apologize, it must sound so silly to say that when I have a fan club of women following me all about.

• If you work, what is your job?
Currently I don’t have a job. I actually use to guard villages when I was younger, but that was another time. Now, I focus on my studies and my own job is to find out what I am. I’m in the school on a ‘full-ride’ scholarship as it’s called. I…my parents are dead, well the ones who I thought were biological are dead. I don’t know my other parents and the Shaman I lived with is old and frail now.

• How do you feel about it?
Feel about what? Not having a job? Or being here by myself? You know, you humans ask the vaguest questions sometimes. I must say, it’s quite an experience to be able to say that “I’m in my own species” I can’t control the way I look as it changes, and it can be dreadfully lonely when the only friend you had was the one that took care of you. I wish sometimes that I had been born a human, you know? The other kids…well, they would have liked me, or they wouldn’t have thought of me as a strange thing. I didn’t have much all my life, and I wouldn’t ever ask for more, but it hurts. It hurts a lot.

I’m sorry for getting so depressed and emotional over this. It’s one of those things that I’ve always had to live with no matter what. I can’t change who I am, but sometimes I dream that one day, I’ll be accepted.

• If in school, what’s school like?
School is a piece of cake for me. I’ve had no problems so far and I’m happy about that. I hate math though. For me it’s the equivalent of going through Chinese Water torture while being slowly stoned to death. Now Literature and History and Mythology and Astronomy and Science are my main strong points. I love those things. In fact, besides math, I believe that I love to learn many new things.

• What do you do for fun?
For me, I love going to parties and talking to new people. Though I love to read, write, sing and dance as well. I have a telescope and sometimes I look up at the stars. It gives me a bit of closure. Now, I understand that to a regular person they would think I’m weird for saying that but hear me out. The way I look at it, I know that all beings live under the same sky, and I know that up there, I can look at the stars and wish on them like a normal person. Stars don’t hide form different people, because they keep twinkling, giving those who are at their lowest hope. I love anything that’s social.

I must say, this interview was quite interesting. Maybe we can meet sometime and have ourselves a good time.

Joy sat in the entrance area, psyching herself up for some work on the punching bags. Her fists always ached for hours afterward and her abs would feel like a truck had rolled over them recently. She supposed she could always tone down her exercise intensity, but what fun would that be?

Today was an extremely casual day for Joy. Instead of her usual lace and flared cuffs, she was dressed simply in gym clothes. Black cotton yoga pants hugged her slim thighs and outlined her toned calves and a black tank top displayed her boyish frame simply but effectively. Her sports bra was blue and the thicker straps framed the spaghetti straps of the top, adding a bit of colour to the ensemble. They also brought out the blue in her large eyes, transforming the wide-eyed baby look into one of frightful determination.

She then brought her long fingers towards her face, hooking them around sections of hair, and began to french braid her long black locks down the back of her head. Normally she would have gone with a simple high ponytail, but when she boxed Joy tended to spin around quite a bit. Getting whipped with one's own hair was never very satisfying. After the elastic was twisted around the end of her braid, Joy twirled it around itself and fixed the bun to her scalp with a handful of bobby pins.

After a few head whips to test the security of her hair, Joy stood up and wandered over to the lengths of bandages near the doorway that lead to the main training hall. She grabbed a few sets, stuck three bundles between her elbow and her waist, and unraveled the other. Joy strode into the room, her eyes fixated on the process of wrapping her left hand. Once she was finished attaching the small claw that kept the piece from unwinding, the girl looked up only to spy a man (slightly overdressed) glaring at a bunch of wooden dummies.

The very next thing she noticed was the tension in the air. Her eyebrows raised daintily, their arches outlining her surprise mixed with a bit of awe. It was quite hard to amass so much tension with only one person in the room! Her surprise turned into a tiny smirk. Well, this would be interesting, at the very least. Her passive sensitivity to vibrations in the air told her nothing more than she could already see. He was ridiculously angry.

Well, Joy thought, whatever works for him. I suppose anger is an integral part of fighting. Why should training be any different? Though this does seem a bit... excessive... Still, Joy was intrigued, and that didn't dissipate easily.

Joy searched the room for a bench and found one with a water bottle and towel set on it. She moved them over unceremoniously and plunked herself down on the bench. They ended up on the floor, the bottle rolled softly backwards and forwards until it settled beside one of her bare feet. Oops.

Not one to be conspicuous in her observations, Joy began to work on wrapping her right hand, taking her time with it. Then, she worked on both feet, carefully covering the more sensitive parts, taping her toes together and securing a length around her ankles. All the time keeping a careful eye on the man. His scarf puzzled her a bit, but she dismissed it as a quirk. A lot of people here at Ria had those, and she was definitely one of them.

When the man made his move, slicing at the dummies, Joy felt rather than saw it. The clean cuts he made with his sword severed the room's ambient vibrations. The shock waves traveled rapidly across the room and jarred against her pale skin, making her clench her teeth as the sudden end to the frequencies slapped her, leaving invisible welts. It wasn't painful, per se, but created a certain amount of discomfort to her body. The vibrations soon normalized themselves and Joy could once again see the sword that had moved so fast. Her awe was limited to the speed of the wielder, the actual results of those slashes did nothing for her. Supposedly the dummies' current state should have surprised her more, but Joy had already experienced the sword's speed and acuteness physically so a couple slices through wood wasn't very impressive in comparison.

Soon her wary bearing transformed into one of cool amusement. He was talking to the dummies! Either he had an unhealthy imagination/obsession or he was unaware she was in the room.. which could also technically point to the former. Either way, her impression of the man took a swift curve and her eyes began to sparkle with their normal mischief. Perhaps training should wait until after a confrontation with this man?

When the realization came that the man was moving towards her bench, specifically his towel and water bottle, Joy quickly moved out of his way to block the doorway instead. She leaned a shoulder against it, arms crossed in front of her unimpressive chest, both hands wrapped as well as each foot. One ankle draped across the other. She looked relaxed, but her eyes said differently. They were rather excited.

Eventually the man crossed the room, the towel thrown nonchalantly over one shoulder, his face a picture of cantankerousness. This did not deter her in the least, but rather spurred Joy to say in a lofty and slightly mocking voice: "You know, even though the school does replace them, it's common courtesy not to demolish their training devices," she paused for a few moments to build tension before adding: "and you forgot your water bottle." She rose an elegant finger from their weave to punctuate her statement by pointing to the accused water bottle.

Lotti couldn't quite put a fingers on why, exactly, but she felt like she wasn't quite where she was supposed to be.

Maybe it was because it was her first day at school and she had conveniently 'forgotten' to go check in with whoever it was she was supposed to check in with; her Uncle Claude had been adamant about her checking in with someone due to the slightly unusual circumstances in which she was arriving at Ria High. But that was not very likely; Lotti wasn't the sort who would feel guilt about blatantly disobeying an order, even if it was an order from her beloved (and reluctant) Uncle Claude. No; the only reason Lotti might be feeling somewhat out of place was because she was wandering an area of the school where few students seemed to be. Could there be a reason for that? Lotti looked down at the map she had been following with enthusiasm ever since she had picked it up at the main entrance dubiously, wondering if it would give her an answer. In the hands of this particular girl it probably could; but that was beside the point.

Lotti held the map before her religiously, her black and white gloved arms holding it out before her as if it was some magic recorder that would reveal, should one look at it closely enough, the secrets of the school. The girl was a mass of pinks, blacks, and whites; the black of her jump suit was set off by bright pink boots and white and pink ruffles belted to her hips, and a large white ribbon reached around her neck to tie in a bow at her front. Hair that went from pink at the roots to white at the tips spilled down her back and kicked up slightly in the breeze her walking created, and there was a noticeable bounce in her step. Lotti's pale brow was slightly furrowed, and her silver eyes with their pink slitted pupils were locked on the basic school map. Almost to match the little white bunny clips that tied off the small buns on either side of her head, a black stuffed rabbit with white stitched eyes and a matching mouth was tucked into the front of her white belts, cradled securely to her stomach.

And, to be honest, the stuffed rabbit wasn't the least bit happy about it.

"Ngh... Lotti, this isn't very comfortable." a man's voice grumped from the stuffed rabbit, and it's little arms wrapped around the belts stubbornly to keep himself from falling through. Stuffed ears twitching, the stuffed animal craned his little head back and glared up at his mistress in obvious irritation. "Lotti, why can't you just carry me?"

"Lotti is sorry, Mr. Jack, but Lotti must hold the map! The lady said that this map will help Lotti, so Lotti must learn it's many secrets to as to be best helped." the girl replied brightly. "But Lotti is doing her best to learn quickly, Mr. Jack!"

"Oh boy..." Mr. Jack, the stuffed rabbit in such discomfort, sighed. Working with the rhythm of Lotti's steps he tugged himself up again. "Lotti, you do know the woman was just being general, don't you? She didn't mean you had to memorize the thing to get around the school."

"Why would she have said what she said if she didn't mean for Lotti to study this map like the important document it obviously is?" Lotti laughed, her giggles slightly eccentric and bouncing off the walls of the hallway.

"Ugh. Fine; I'll be blunt." Mr. Jack sighed. "You're holding the map upside down, Lotti."

"Huh?!" Lotti came to a stop with a dramatic gasp, her eyes wide. "Noooo... how can you tell?!"

"One usually doesn't get to somewhere in the south by going north." Mr. Jack sighed heavily, only shaking his head as the girl's laughter turned slightly embarrassed.

"Is that what that little pointy thingy in the corner means, Mr. Jack?"

"Yes, Lotti; that is what the little pointy thing in the corner means."

“ACHOOOOOOO!”

Lotti's head immediately tilted to the side and Mr. Jack struggled to look in the direction of the sneeze's dwindling echos; both were very quiet and very still for several long minutes.

"What was that?" Lotti asked in a loud, exaggerated whisper.

"It was a sneeze, Lotti." Mr. Jack said as he prevented himself for slipping once again. "And why the heck are you whispering..?"

"Oh my." the girl whispered, her tone reverent. The map forgotten, it was folded and tucked away in a dark pocket before Mr. Jack was plucked from his belted prison and clutched to the girl's chest. "Lotti has never been in a building that could sneeze before."

"Building's don't sneeze." Mr. Jack sighed as he wrapped his fluffy arms around hers, obviously delighted to be in her arms instead of strapped to her belt. "There must be somebody in one of these rooms. The dorms were back that way, so these must be classrooms. It's probably a teacher or something, since all the students seem to be... somewhere else. Come to think of it, we probably aren't even supposed to be back here."

"Nonsense, Mr. Jack!" Lotti replied, still whispering. "Lotti is positive a building could sneeze if it had a mind to. And the doors were unlocked, so of course we are allowed to be here."

Apparently under the impression that ninja-like silence was required, Lotti snuck carefully down the hall, Mr. Jack sighing but compliant in her arms. For a while it was quiet, and then the girl was able to hear a few voices; every once in a while a student would pop into view, give the girl far too old to be clutching a stuffed animal an appropriately disproving look, and slip into another word before Lotti could get a word off. She often was the one who did the talking to strangers; Mr. Jack liked to remain quiet and highly suspicious for reasons Lotti had never really been able to put a finger on. Either way, none of the students she saw looked to be of a sneezy nature, so Lotti didn't waste time chasing them down like she would have under normal circumstances. Instead the girl's steps gradually slowed, and her pale cheeks expanded in a huff.

"Mr. Jack, Lotti is..." she began.

"Lost. I know, Lotti, I know." the stuffed rabbit planted his little paws on her arm and arched his neck about, white eyes curious and nose twitching as if he was actually sniffing the air. His ears flicked to the side and he sniffed towards a door cracked open to the left. "Just go in there. Someone's there... if nothing else, we can get directions. You'll be hungry within the hour; you have the eating habits of a five year old."

"Thank you for the compliment!" Lotti practically sparkled as she pushed open the door Mr. Jack had indicated. It opened up to a small classroom, and the girl stepped forward with a curious expression on her face. "Hmm..."

The room Mr. Jack had chosen was, obviously, not one the students they had glimpsed were slipping into. It was a small, quiet room lit by the sun, and Lotti took a lingering moment to observe the scenery outside the window before her gaze drifted to the front of the room. To Lotti's surprise (and possibly Mr. Jack's, but he had gone back to being silent) there was a figure sitting behind the desk. She looked comfortable at her station, and between her hands danced flames of varying colors that she seemed to be completely capable of controlling. Was she a teacher? No, she was too young to be a teacher, surely. Lotti found herself smiling at this assumption; she hadn't made much headway at her last school, so in actuality she had no idea what a teacher looked like or even if they 'looked like' anything at all. Giving a mental shrug at that particular train of thought she gave Mr. Jack an encouraging squeeze and, noticing little else, stepped towards the woman.

"Hello!" the vibrant young woman chirped as she came to a halt before the desk with a beaming smile. "Sorry to intrude, but Lotti is terribly lost. The map was upside down." she sighed, her tone tragic and her shoulders drooping, before correcting in a snap and looking towards the young woman eagerly. "Lotti is sorry to intrude! Are you a teacher? Lotti has never seen a teacher hold fire in her hands without lots and lots of screaming. How do you do that?"