Transferance from Abroad (IC)

[Nimue]

Nerin pressed her nose against the window of the taxi, holding her breath in tight, not wanting to fog the glass. She could feel the vibrations of the engine shaking through the vehicle, passing up through the frame and the glass, mingling with the staccato raindrop beats against the window, or maybe it was just her own racing pulse in her ears, excitement quickening her pulse. Outside the world was a wash of colors, though grey was currently the most prominent, bearing down from the normally azure sky, blanketing the city and streets, bleaching away the colors. Not that the alien minded much, even muted as they were, the scenery that blurred past her. Try as she might, there was far to much to take in, the parade of human society that she glimpsed as she wizzed through the winding roads. It was enough to make her head spin, though a few moments later she realized that was simply her brain reminding her to take a breath. Pushing back from the window, she gulped in air, though soon found herself regretting it, an acidic smoke flooded her mouth, making her eyes water. Coughing, she fought to find a safe patch of air to inhale, as well as the source of the unbearably pungent fumes.

Scanning the Inside of the cab, Nerin found that the drivers face was now billowing out clouds of a wispy white vapor, collecting in the pilots compartment before escaping to flood the uppermost inch and a half of the cabin, or rushing out the open window adjacent to the man in question. Perhaps noticing her distress, the driver turned, revealing a large brown cylinder clenched in his teeth, the other end shouldering. “Wazza Matta Chiko?†He asked, more bemused than concerned. “You ain’t got no cigars where your from?†Nerin shook her head, still sputtering for breath. Her driver wheezed loudly for several long seconds, in which time Nerin realized that he might in fact have been laughing. Rubbing his cigar out in a small glass bowl on the dashboard, before venting the windows and letting the toxic cloud escape.

As Nerin enjoyed the newly refreshed air, she contemplated if she’d made a mistake in her insistence that she wanted to ride the Taxi, rather than accept the transport which had been repeatedly offered by the Freedom League. It had seemed harmless enough, once they’d explained the basic function. You get inside, tell the driver where you want to go, and then he or she will ferry you to your destination, at which point, repayment is given in the form of currency. Having already feared she’d taken to much hospitality from her hosts, she was eager to make her own means of travel, rather than further draw on their kindness (though she was forced to accept the money which would be needed to pay for her travel). Had she been more confident in her ability to locate Claremont Academy, Nerin wouldn’t have even bothered with the Cab service, and simply flown herself over.

The Ride continued on for another fifteen minutes before arriving at the school grounds. In that time, the alien girl was spared any further chemical attacks on her lungs, though she had doubts if the smell from the cigar smoke would be easy to remove from her flight suit. The School grounds were rather different than the city, with a much greater abundance of green flora, as well as a very sharp decrease in other automobiles. Thanking the driver for his service, Nerin handed him the money, just as she’d been shown, and removed her baggage from the vehicles rear cargo bay. Turning towards the building, she admired its architecture for a moment or two. It stood much smaller than the towering monoliths which dominated the skyline of the city, but what it lacked in size, it made up for in other areas, the visage ornately designed and maintained. Nodding with her approval, Nerin hurried along the main path, eager to get out of the rain before she was soaked through and through.

A human stopped her as she went along, holding an umbrella in one hand, a clipboard in the other. Nerin was prepared for this. Her hands went to her pocket, producing the documents she’d been provided to confirm her authorization to access the school ground. Scanning the documents over, he nodded and smiled. Pointing towards the large set of double doors, he instructed Nerin to head into the building, and wait inside for someone to be along to meet her.

The rain began to pick up just as Nerin entered the building, dripping wet, but still smiling. Still very much abuz with anticipation and excitement over this new place she’d be calling home for a while, it was all she could do just to keep herself from fidgeting like a child as she sat in one of the comfortable chairs provided and cast her eyes about the entrance, awaiting whomever would be along to see her.

[Breella]

Off to the side bounced a short girl, about 5ft in height practically bouncing on her heals. Her long brown-red hair flowed out around her, it was adorned with beads and feathers. She wore a blue and yellow claremont uniform and there were vine like tattoos extending down her arms and legs, they moved on her skin. She was also barefoot and waving frantically. "Hello! I'm Gwen!" she squealed, her olive freckled skin flush with excitement.

Gwen had spent all day greeting new students, large, small, blue, orange, extra limbs, no limbs... she was elated to meet so many new people. "Welcome to Claremont!"

[Nimue]

Nerin did not find herself waiting long before a young woman entered into the chamber. What drew Nerins eye first was not the feathers and beads adorned in the cascading tangle of red hair which trailed behind her, but rather the tattoo markings along her body, which at first glance bore more than a striking resemblance to the emerald bars which branched along Nerins red skin. A closer look showed them to be more akin to earthly vegetation, rather than the square bars which she’d mistaken them for at first. The other odd details came into focus once the girl slowed down, though she seemed just as jittery as Nerin herself felt, so even though she was standing in one place, the girl certainly couldn’t be said to be standing still.

Standing, Nerin found herself now straining her neck down at the girl, who introduced herself by the name of Gwen, finding that the red head only stood as height as Gwen’s Chin. Not letting the difference in stature get in her way, Nerin Smiled, returning the warm gesture that Gwen had offered. “My name Is Nerin A’Bev. Thank you for welcoming me to your school, Gwenâ€. Something odd caught her eye for a moment, a trick of the light which almost made it seem like Gwen’s markings were moving about. But…surely this was not the case.

[Breella]

The Vines were under strict orders not to make any unwanted advances on unsuspecting students, however they knew Gwen hadn't told them they couldn't move around, so they had decided to make their mischief by changing patterns when people weren't looking. Gwen backed herself up a few paces so Nerin wouldn't have to strain to look at her. Gwen was used to being the short person around. "If you'll follow me I can get you started towards the dorms, we can get you settled in and then I can show you around the school." Gwen reached out a hand, offering to help the girl with her bags.

[Heritage]

Jeena was out exploring the school grounds and facilities, trying to memorize the layout; if they knew they were going to stay in a given location for any length of time, her and Zach always noted food and water supplies, sleeping areas, power sources, and other strategic resources. As she came down the corridor sketching a map into her notebook, she spotted Gwen speaking with another alien.

To be honest, the tall girl might have just been an exceptional human, but Jeena doubted it; her clothing and the way she carried herself suggested a non-terrestiral origin, and of course her skin color and distinctive marking favored the hypothesis. She'd heard they weren't the first aliens to arrive on Earth and most certainly wouldn't be the last, but it still came as quite a shock to see one here now.

The Tektani girl stuffed her notebook in her bookbag and slowly approached the pair, hugging close to the lockers on the wall; as usual she work almost all black, with her striking purple sunglasses perched on her head. There was a smile on her pale, blue-eyed face, but also a hint of caution. Jeena waved nonchalantly.

"Hey, roomie! You still greeting new students?"

[Breella]

Gwen turned to Jeena and her smile brightened. The Vines also got excited and began to reach out to the girl. Tendrils began to curl out of Gwen's skin until a full on vine about two inches thick with dark green leaves stretched out. "Jeena, this is Nerin, Nerin this is my roommate Jeena!" Gwen's voice was full of cheer as she flopped her hands around referring to each girl in turn. "I've sort of made myself the greeter today, do you know where your first destination is Nerin?"

[Quinn]

"Well, hopefully it's somewhere inside. Weather's quite lovely, yeah?"

A familiar figure in a black coat came in through the door, shaking water out of his raven hair. Morgan gave a somewhat weak smile as he hopped on one foot into the building, one foot oddly missing a boot. The teen stifled a sneeze, leaning on a locker looking rather...bedraggled. As if he'd fallen out of a particular tree, hit several branches on the way down, and landed on the wet ground in a heap.

"Y'know Gwen, I gotta talk to Brian about crashing through the door singing your praises when I'm in the middle of delicate work."

If the vines bothered him, he didn't show it; he'd learned just to give them an amiable pat if they shifted near him. Like a leafy puppy! His grin turned mischevious, and he offered a hand to the newcomer.

"Morgan Crowe, nice to meetcha."

[Nimue]

Nerin Thought that the suggestion to head to the dormitory seemed a good one. She had a lingering suspicion that she’d been given further instructions to follow upon arrival, to complete the process of moving in to the school. In the midst of recent events, whatever she’d been told to do was buried amid the hundred thousand new sights and sounds. Trusting that if it was important, it would come to her, she was content to follow along the energetic girls lead for the time being. “The Dorms would be a nice place to start. If possible, I’d like to dry off soonâ€. Gwen then extended a hand towards Nerin, whom contemplated what the exact meaning of this gesture was.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden arrival of a white haired young woman, whom was sporting a rather intriguing piece of eyewear. Gwen was quick to introduce her roommate, Jeena , still bubbling with enthusiasm, from her body appearing several long vines. Nerin watched the plants curiously, unsure if this was a normal thing for earthly plants to do, though her instincts told her that was unlikely. She rebounded back to the conversation that they’d been having, asking if Nerin knew her first destination. Her words were preempted by another arrival, this time a young male, entering in through the door, his black coat covered in bits of vegetation, prompting Nerin to reassess her previous stance on whether or not plants growing from human bodies was normal. The disheveled human spoke with Gwen first, patting one of her vines gently, before turning towards Nerin and introducing himself, extending his hands.

Nerin had seen a handshake before, she knew what she was supposed to do. The arrival of two new individuals in quick succession had overwhelmed her a bit, and she was drawing a black. Erring to mimic what she’d seen, she patted Morgan Crows hand, as he’d done with the Vines. “Nerin A’Bev, it Is also nice to meet you.â€

Returning her attentions to Gwen, Nerin responded to the earlier question about her destination “Morgan Crow made a good suggestion, is there somewhere I could dry off?â€

[Heritage]

The Tektani girl visibly cringed as the happy vine reached out to her, but she kept a smile plastered on her face; as the leafy appendage touched her arm, she began an internal count. One, two, three, four...

"Jeena, this is Nerin, Nerin this is my roommate Jeena!" Gwen's voice was full of cheer as she flopped her hands around referring to each girl in turn. "I've sort of made myself the greeter today, do you know where your first destination is Nerin?"

Jeena nodded and waved, noting the new girl's apparent unfamiliarity with human customs. "Hi." Her eyes flickered down to her arm. Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen...

“Morgan Crow made a good suggestion, is there somewhere I could dry off?â€

Once she got to thirty, Jeena gently lifted the vine off her arm and did her best to pat it affectionately; to be honest, she hadn't made much progress in her attempts to build up a tolerance to Gwen's green friends, but she gave herself points for sticking to it.

"That sounds like a good idea; do you have a roommate assigned yet? If not, I can run and grab you some towels; you can even warm up in me and Gwen's room, right?" She looked to the florapath for approval. Of course, it was more than simple altruism that inspired her actions; any chance to learn more about another alien (suspected alien, she reminded herself) should not be passed up.

[Semi-Autogyro]

John walked down the stairs, clad in a camouflage rain poncho with two sets of towels under his arm. When he saw the assembled group he stopped, his gaze finally falling on Morgan. "Ah. You managed to extricate yourself." John handed his friend one of the towels. "Sans one boot it seems." he said upon seeing the missing item in question. "Darwin saw you land in tree since his desk faces the window. He was cackling madly while taking numerous cellular phone photos while I was getting around to help you." John said in his normal deadpan voice while looking around and spotting the girls. "Greeting Miss Gwendolyn, Miss Jeena, Miss.." John abruptly stopped mid-sentence when he realized he did not know this person, but she was however soaked like Morgan. "My apologies Miss. Here you go." he said and handed Nerin his other towel.

Turning his attention back to Morgan, John told him "I'll be back in a bit." With that he raised the hood of the poncho over his head and headed outside into the rain, his strides taking him toward the leafy arch-nemesis of Crow.

[Breella]

Gwen smiled politely and nodded to the boys. "Now Morgan, have you been off gallivanting with that tree again? You're going to break her heart or she's going to break your neck, I'm not quite sure which it will be first!" Gwen turned her attentions to Nerin. "Why yes, I do believe we can get you settled into your dorm room and you can change there before we take a stroll around the campus." Gwen looked around for any of the other new arrivals she was scheduled to snag up, but it seemed that no one else had shown up yet. "Excuse me a moment." she said before turning to check her iPhone. "Ah, it seems the flight of the others I was going to meet has been delayed, shall we get going?"