We don't need no education

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

The moment she set foot in the building, Seren realized how out of place she felt. There was something about the ordered chaos to the flocks of children and youths streaming in and out of classrooms and libraries that appealed to her, even as the rigid schedules chafed against her free spirit. No doubt it was the same reason that she only barely managed to fit in with the Dragoons. She felt keenly the eyes of strangers upon herself as she padded on quiet feet along hallways and poked her nose into reading nooks, very aware of the night dark aura that trailed in her wake. Setting her apart. Marking her as other, more than ever in this place where magic was outlawed and foreign.

When she found the classroom - and the class - she had been searching for, the lesson was still in session. Slipping in through the open doors, she settled quietly in the far back and tried to pay heed to the subject at hand. But most of her attention was on the owner of a particularly dark head of curly hair, and the teacher's droning voice was soon little more than a buzz at the periphery of her awareness as she contemplated her brother's relationship with combs.

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

Mateo's relationship with combs can be described in one word: sporadic. His curls are longer than they were when his fathers left Stormbreak, and no one has seen fit yet to tell him to get a haircut. It's probably because of the general growth spurt anyway - gone is the tiny child playing at the florist's next door. Mateo, at a glance, would appear to most as if he's the ripe old age of eleven, and he busies himself doodling in the margins of his book.

It isn't that the droning voice of the teacher is boring him (it is, but that doesn't make the lesson any less interesting) - it's just that he's certain he's read all of this before in a book he found. And so he's sketching out the herbs he's seen recently, growing in window pots alongside the Collegium; lavender leaves and peppermint, sage flowers and valerian root.

It's just as he's finished that a chime goes off, signalling the end of the class, and Mateo scoops his things up and unceremoniously into his bag, already halfway to his feet before he's even shrugged into his coat.

mateo!

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

Unnoticed, Seren lingered where she was as the tolling of a bell somewhere unleased a bustle of pushed back chairs, assembled books and utensils and chatting children. The focus of her attention was moving too, and as she watched him, she kept thinking up interesting ways to draw his gaze. She could simply walk up to him, she supposed, but... what was the fun in that?

So it was with a mischievous little smile Seren summoned a butterfly between her cupped hands, and set it loose to flutter through the classroom. In the light of day the gleam of starlight was hardly noticeable, and the wings only looked very very white. Winging its way towards Mateo, Seren meant to have it circle the boys head and then return to her, hopefully drawing his gaze as well. Leaned back casually against the wall in her Dragoon uniform, she figured she'd be easy enough to spot.

Now she just had to hope he remembered her, from their trip home together on Ronin's nimbus. It had been very dark, and very late.

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

Mateo has just about packed away his things and has risen to his feet when the butterfly circles about his face, and he (naturally) follows it like a puppy, blue eyes full of curiosity as he turns around. His gaze lands on Seren not a moment later, casual as anything and dressed in her dragoon best, and the boy's face lights up to see someone familiar, not to mention family.

"Hallo, Seren!" he greets her brightly, his accent soft but undoubtedly musical in the same way that Remi's is, and whilst the others all file out of the classroom, he approaches Seren instead, shouldering his bag and beaming up at her. There's no doubt that he does remember his big sister, though he's not sure what has brought her to the Collegium.

"Am I in trouble?" Obviously, that's his first assumption.

mateo!

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

He recognized her. That spread a glow of warmth through her core. Not only that, but he looked quite happy to see her too. A soft smile spread across her face in mirror of his, and Seren held out her arms to wrap her little brother in a hug, should he allow it and not be the easily embarrassed sort (like herself).

"Hello Mateo. Not at all, I just wanted to surprise you. Tadaa!" Spreading her hands in a 'here I am' way. "Did it work?" The butterfly belatedly caught up with the boy and settled on her shoulder. For a moment it lingered there, flexing its wings. Then it dissolved into stardust, swirling and gone on a draft.

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

Puberty has not come for Mateo quite yet, and so it's with a boyish joy that he moves into Seren's embrace, giving her a tight hug that speaks of not having seen family in much longer than just a day or so. "It worked," he confirms, still grinning widely as he steps back to watch the butterfly land on her shoulder before it shimmers away into starlight. He doesn't seem in any particular rush - this is his last lesson of the day - but equally he's keen to get out of the classroom.

"Are you staying for long?" he asks, noting the Dragoon uniform and shifting the bag on his shoulder. "Or... has Pa come back with you?" Unable to stop his blue eyes from lighting up, he automatically glances around for where one of his fathers might be hiding.

mateo!

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

"Good." Offering him a wink, Seren draped an arm around his shoulders and steered them out of the classroom. Noticing his glance around, the made a rueful grimace. "Sorry, just me. I got done with my chores early... was thinking we could do something fun. Unless you have plans?" Seren admitted to being woefully ignorant when it came to his daily schedule.

When another chime rang, she jumped a little, still not used to the sound. "How often does it do that?" she asked, blinking inquiringly down at her brother. "I've never been to a school before..."

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

Mateo leans easily against his sister; he'd fallen asleep with her on the nimbus on the way back to Stormbreak, after all. It would be silly not to be comfortable with her now. "Something fun?" Clearly that has wiped away any sadness he might feel at his fathers not being present, and he grins up at her and nods. "What'd you want to do? We need to be quiet in the Collegium and in the Archive, but outside we can do what we like."

The chime is nothing to him, and he shakes his head up at Seren. "No plans - that was my last class for the day," he explains. "The bell rings every hour to say when the lesson is finished. Then it rings again when the next one starts. Have you really never been to school? How did you learn to read and things?" Already he's leading her away through the Collegium, his little footsteps sure and confident.

mateo!

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

Glad that her presence was enough for now, Seren shrugged in a lofty admission that she hadn't planned ahead that far. "I'm not entirely sure. I could spirit you away somewhere for the afternoon. But," she said with a mischievous glance at the boy, "if you can think of anything that won't end with both of us in trouble, it should probably be saved for some other time." When they had permission, and wouldn't be hunted down by irate fathers.

The building was rather impressive, and the looked around curiously as Matheo navigated with ease through the labyrinth of hallways and stairs.
"Our dad taught me," she explained about her schooling. "Reading and figuring, sketching and some other things... We lived in Torchline then, so I had to learn to swim too. That was my favorite... and maybe the boxing, too." Dodging aside a hoard of older students that cast long stares after her - or perhaps her starfilled shadows - Seren ignored them. "Do you like it here? I heard you have a thing for plants."

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

Something for them both to do that wouldn't get them in trouble? Mateo thinks he might have a couple of ideas, and he smiles sunnily back up at his sister. "We could go to the market," he suggests. "Or we can visit the Celestine. Or we could go up and see the skyboats on the Falling?" His boat is up there, and it's something he barely manages to contain. It isn't quite finished yet, and given that he wants to impress Seren, he doesn't want to show it to her until it's complete and ready to fly.

"He did?" He's grinning even more widely by now, Mateo ducking past the older students as well with ease, heading towards the exit that they might meander out of the Tower and back into the streets. "He taught me to sketch too, but I don't think there are any places here to learn to swim properly. Unless we sneak into an enclosure in the Celestine." He chuckles at the prospect, before nodding confidently in response to her question.

"I really like it here. It's why when Dad and Pa moved to the Greatwood, I decided to stay." That she knows about his hobby is a bit surprising, but he can only puff out his chest with pride at it. "I'm growing a garden, yes."

mateo!

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

Seren gave each option due consideration, and tried to figure out what her brother would prefer. The notion of sneaking into a pen for a swimming lesson was decidedly interesting...
"Then, let's go to the Celestine," she decided. "I've been there a few times but never actually managed to see any of the creatures."

It surprised her a bit that Mateo was so fond of the place. The Collegium and Stormbreak both, she supposed... For all that she tried, the city never quite felt like a real home.
"I'm glad you're comfortable," she told him with a warm smile. "I'm sorry I haven't been around so much. I suppose... I'm still figuring out where I like it best." Letting go of him briefly until they were outside again, Seren eased herself back into her brother's space, rather reluctant to be too far apart now that she finally had a chance to spend time with him.
"What sort of things do you grow in your garden?"

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

"Okay!" Mateo says brightly, and as they spill out onto the street, he turns for the Celestine with an ease that suggests he has been there many a time before, both in and out of school hours. "You haven't? We will have to look at the enclosures and see what's there," he decides with a wise nod, hopping over a crack in the cobblestones.

"It's alright," he trills, turning to walk backwards to speak with Seren. "You're like Da and Pa that way. They're always looking for places to make new homes," he says. Intuitive and hearing much more than he really ought to, it's not much of a surprise that Mateo has sussed his parents out. "And it must be pretty interesting, being able to explore all over everywhere!"

Falling back into step with Seren, he looks up as he walks, offering a dimpled smile. "Flowers and herbs right now," he explains. "I'm trying to grow chamomile from seeds. But I've got lavender and sage, and mint and some chives too," he says. "If you want any, I can get you some."

mateo!

Hey, starchild, are you listening?

"I'm in your hands," she laughed generously and let Mateo take the lead, thoroughly enjoying his antics. She always pranced rather than walked herself, and had no compunction about skipping over the same cracks as he did. Light on her feet, it soon became a game to see if she could keep pace with his shorter legs.

"If you ever want to go somewhere, just let me know," Seren offered. "I can take us pretty much anywhere... well, not Draig Cordillera or Hak Etme, I haven't been there myself yet, but aside from those." Her eyes glittered with excitement of having uncharted territory yet to be discovered. Perhaps she should spend the winter exploring a bit more...

The offer to give her his precious plants earned the boy a brilliant smile. Reaching out to ruffle his hair, Seren arched her neck in a gracious bow. "Thank you, little brother. I might take you up on that. I'm trying to learn more about healing, so if you want to maybe we could help each other out?"

Seren

My spores been growing by the day; my days been shining bright

Mateo can sense a game when one approaches, and he's grinning over his shoulder at his sister as they hop and prance and twirl their way to the Celestine; the boy only slows his footsteps when the pathway bleeds into cobblestones that are much too difficult to nabigate by crack. "That's almost anywhere," he says, still sounding mightily impressed. "Are you able to turn into a big bird, or a manticore? That's what Da and Pa can do." And there's no reason to think that Seren will be any different, given her parentage, right?

Beaming right back up at Seren, Mateo leaves his hair all rumpled up - the curls don't want to settle on a good day, so it's a fashion statement that he's getting used to making. "Yes, I would like that!" He nods his head. "I know lots of plants are able to heal. Some of them can be quite bad though, did you know that? Some flowers are poisonous."

mateo!