Xane

Yarne shifted back to his two-legged "humanoid" form, eyeing the redhead with a bit of a grimace. That was... not a fun trick. Extinction hadn't felt that close in a long, long time...

"Y-yarne. The Last Taguel." Yarne mirrored the greeting, closing his eyes with a sigh. Now he had a giant hole in his pants, too... ah, well. He didn't like them anyways: he already was used to just his traditional taguel armor.

As he rambles a bit to keep Yarne distracted, he slips a few more noisemakers under the cups for good measure. Perfect. Anyone who picks up a cup will be at a toss up for getting a noisy surprise.

Yarne was getting thirsty, what with all the constant panting from the temperatures in the feast area. He had never tried whatever kind of drink this was - it wasn't water, so he had never tried it before, but it looked tasty. He could drink directly from the bowl, as he was heavily wanting to, but copying other's actions was the best call for not causing a disturbance...

Yarne reached for a cup... and as he pulled it up...

FWEET

"GAH!"

Xane had gotten bored just sitting stuffing his face (mostly with meats, though someone further up the table had brought some tasty smoked salmon that Xane would be a fool to say no to) and decided he might as well mix things up at this mixer. What better place to survey the other guests than the one and only place anyone who knew him would have a mounting dread seeing him at? The punchbowl! A shame that he is morally opposed to spiking it… yet. He’ll wait till most people have gotten at least one cup and the party starts slowing down. Right now the drama doesn't need alcohol to grease the gears going off of some of the conversations he overheard.

As Xane scans the crowd, two familiar faces of bright red haired royalty stick out to him- Minerva and her wayward elder brother Michalis. He remembers the leader of the Macedonian White Wings fairly well- her straight laced attitude was always fun to mess with. He hopes her little sister is doing well… As for Michalis, well this seems to be a place of second chances, it’s not up to Xane whether he blows it or not.

Glancing around some more- Xane swears his heart leaps to his throat (hopefully not, that would be a pain to fix in the middle of a party). If it isn’t princey’s little retainer… He’d had the fortune of greeting Marth in passing but hadn’t seen hide nor hair of the knight who tends to be glued to the king’s side (come to think of it, shouldn’t he find a new nickname for Marth now that he's been coronated? Eh, future Xane problems). Seeing him here and now… Xane isn’t really sure what to do. He was as honest to Kris as he dared be to anyone. It’s one of the big reasons he left Archanea all together. Xane knew it was always a possibility he'd find Kris again, but now that he’s face to face with it he’s at a complete loss at what to do. He stares out at the floor with an uncharacteristically forlorn glint in his eyes and a heavy heart. His playful grin never falters, and his stance is calculatedly approachable, but he seems lost in thought looking out at all the heads of colorful hair and fragrant plates of food from all over.

“Hahaha, It was a- pffw- a Joke spell I picked up from- ahaha, oh, my stomach…!” He could barely get a sentence out, too busy laughing his butt off. Xane looked so utterly silly, covered in the sweet cream, and he seemed to take the joke well too. That was the best part perhaps, the two of them both able to laugh at it.

After a good few more minutes of laughter, it finally died down enough for him to speak up. “It was a tome I picked up from a really weird merchant, it was this old lady from.. Elias? Elyos? Something along those lines in any case!” He recounted. The woman was really strange, as she not only sold this tome, but a bunch of different weapons that looked like giant treats. He was so very tempted to buy the giant lollipop axe, despite having no talent with them. It was named the Lollichop! How could he not?

Still though, he took note of Xane’s form changing to that of one of their classmates. The more he saw, the more impressed Ewan got by Xane’s ability. It seems he didn’t only copy physical appearances, but characteristics as well. He couldn’t help but wonder how far they could push it…

He continued grabbing clothes from the floor and folding them up, taking care to stack them neatly. It wasn’t difficult, but it was getting boring fast… Hmmmm, surely a little retaliation prank wouldn’t hurt right? Xane couldn’t be the only one having fun. A devious thought crossed his mind, contrasting his sweet baby face.

While Xane was folding elsewhere, Ewan placed a tome under a pile of clothes, purposefully letting the bookmark stick out, both to make it easier to spot, and to entice the person picking it up to open it. It was a silly tome he picked up from a merchant from Elyos- The Tome of Tiramistorm. carelessly opening the book would blast you in the face with chocolate cream. He wasn’t sure why such a tome existed, but boy was it fun to mess around with. It was all just magic, so the cream would vanish quickly again, leaving no mess. Otherwise they’d have to clean that up too and that would just be too much.

As he finishes some more folding he finds- right Ewan mentioned a book didn’t he? Before Xane reaches for it he pauses- waaaait a minute here. It’s wrapped in a way that he can’t see the cover, with only the book mark sticking out. He doubts it could’ve gotten tangled just so on accident, in a perfect way to convince its finder to open it. Xane remembers again that Ewan likes pranks- ohhh he sees how it is. Well no harm in the kid getting one over him as pay back, Xane’s little jump scare did go a bit farther then he wanted it to. All's fair in pranks and war.

Xane grins at his decision and calls out to make sure Ewan knows to look over. Nothing is more satisfying than watching a well laid prank come to fruition. As he speaks he picks up the book letting it flip open in his hand “Heya Ewan! I think I found your book over here, let me-

WA!” Xane is blasted spectacularly in the face with chocolate cream!!!

He was surprised that Xane had the maturity to want to clean it up himself though. Not that Ewan wasn’t planning to do that! Nooo, he totally didn’t have running away as his first thought… he did.

“You just wanted to surprise me, I was the one that ultimately bumped into them. Plus, the teachers are kinda used to this thing from me, ehehe. No need to already make your reputation weird for my sake!” He said as he began to fold the clothes back up and putting them back where they belonged. His own reputation wasn’t necessarily bad but. He had a habit of getting into mischief and minor accidents. “I like your positive attitude though! People need to look on the bright side more often!”

“They really do need to lighten up- it’s always Sir Xane what are you doing? You shouldn’t tarnish the reputations of your allies, or do I have to remind you again?” As Xane speaks he takes the form of a familiar blue haired swordsman, someone Ewan should recognize at least in passing as he is a fellow Blue Lions student. Though the outfit is different then a uniform, complete with blue tunic and leather pauldron on his right shoulder (Xane is now in the shape of Kris from the time of New Mystery of the Emblem).

“...” Xane blinks at Ewan’s struggle to stand up the next cabinet- this kid.. His arms are noodles- Xane snorts in a decidedly un Kris-like way at how hard Ewan tries to pick up the hardwood.

“Please, allow me to assist” Xane grins at Ewan and rights the piece of furniture with ease, then continues to go around the room setting all of the toppled pieces upright. It’s been a while since he took the shape of his old friend and brother in arms- it has him feeling a bit nostalgic if he’s honest, he wonders how much Kris has grown by now… Welp, no need to get gloomy! 

…he was taking a bit though. Maybe Ewan should check up on him just to be sure. “So, did you find anything interesting?” No answer, maybe he’s busy?

“Hey Xane, is everything al-“ it was then that Xane popped out from the hood he was hiding in with a loud sound. Ewan jumped up with a loud yell, falling backwards from shock. “YIPES!” He yelled at an embarrassingly high pitch.

Unfortunately, him falling backwards caused him to hit his head on the cabinet behind him, which began to sway unsteadily.

“Ow ow ow…” he rubbed the bump on the back of his head. When he looked back his face paled. The cabinet was swaying and began to tip over.

“No nonononono!” But it was too late. The cabinet tipped over, which crashed into the cabinet behind it, which caused it to also tip over. Like a stack of dominoes, cabinets were falling over, the clothing stored in them being scattered everywhere. Ewan visibly cringed with each loud THUD! of a cabinet falling over, until it reached the end of the room. The cabinets that had fallen over looked like total disasters. The frame thankfully was sturdy enough that nothing got damaged, but clothes were everywhere.

“...pfft-” he can’t help it- he snorts- huffs- and starts to downright *laugh* “AH- HAHAHA-you- your *face*- and then- the cabinets- ahh i can’t breath” Xane bowls over a bit, clutching his stomach- 

he manages to calm down fairly quickly- oh but look at this mess.. Well, there are two ways he could go with this. He could grab Ewan’s hand and sprint off, leaving no one the wiser on who made a mess of the store room… but that would not be a good note to open his semester with, especially if they got caught.

“ahhh… that was too good- come on let's fix this up before we can be blamed for it” he grins at Ewan and bumps into his shoulder. If there’s anything Xane learned from his time under that princey, it's that if you want to cause mischief and not get in trouble for it all you need to do is make it look like it never happened. He’ll probably need to flex that skill, looking at the mounting dread on Ewan’s face- oh he feels bad… 

His mind wandering, he couldn’t help but get a little curious. Xane’s comment made him think of some is his classmates. He’s seen people who look slender at first glance only to have abs you could do laundry one underneath. He couldn’t help but wonder.. nope nope nope nope. He was not taking his mind in that direction. He could feel his ears heat up and redden too, this train of thought was flung off the tracks.

“A-Anyway, storage room, right? Let’s go to the storage room!” He announced, a bit more loudly than he should, really trying to get this topic out of his head. Ewan led him to a large room with rows and rows of cabinets, all of them holding different styles and sizes of uniforms.

“Storage room, yeah” Xane lets Ewan off the hook, for now.

“Woah- color me impressed, I didn’t expect there to be this much variety” Xane whistles as he looks around at the cabinets, poking and prodigy a bit. It’s a bit dusty smelling, but surprisingly no evidence of moths. It’s well kept, and Xane feels… maybe just a bit of magic? Probably a ward for said moths, wouldn’t do to have the student uniforms getting ruined after all. He surprisingly neatly folds his coat and puts it in one of the cabinets with the similar style and sizes. “Good riddance Mr. Tight Seems” Xane scoffs at it as he closes the cabinet and turns to keep exploring.

It’d be easy to hide down here in all the clothes, scare people like a ghost, hide a frog in here… none of which Xane will do right now of course, he’s on a student led tour on his first day after all there’s no way he should pull out any serious pranks just yet, right…?

-But he can’t help himself. As he and Ewan explore the store room he finds a larger robe that looks like it could belong to a student mage. Perfect. He slips under it, waiting for Ewan to pass by- 

“Within said mountains actually is a small village of Caer Pelyn, where I live! It’s a really peaceful place with lots of kind people, you’d love it! If you’re really lucky you might even get to see Lady Myrrh! She’s who we call the Great Dragon you see, she’s very kind and friendly, and she guards over this temple where..” He was about to keep prattling on, but realized now might not be the best time for it. After all they’re not entirely done with the tour yet!

“Sorry, I was rambling there for a second huh? To get to your question, you’re free to customize your uniform to your liking!” He said with a cheerful smile, doing a little twirl and showing off his own clothes to show his point. “So long as you’re wearing an official academy shirt, pants and shoes, you’re free to change things up! There’s also plenty of variations to said parts, like shorts!”

“Stopping by the store room would probably be a good idea- I wanted to get accepted as soon as I made landfall, so I mailed everything in and got a package with this stuff in turn on my way here. I didn’t really have the chance to pick it out myself” Xane decides to explain a bit, must be weird seeing him so uncomfortable in a uniform that is normally fully customizable. 

He can’t help but admire this place for that, he’s seen other human places of learning be plenty more strict. Perhaps he judged the Officers Academy too quickly. (maybe he judged Ewan too quickly as well, but that’s a thought that gets quickly locked away with practiced ease.)

He notices the flush on Ewan’s cheeks and his grin turns a bit more mischievous “Oh, so they’re a bit thin? Wouldn’t that make them nice and breathable for training in? I don’t see any problems with a well built male student just wearing them then, though I guess some female student’s would get embarrassed…” he pokes a bit, trying to tease Ewan again. C’mon kid take the bait— he dosn’t have much hope that the tease will land. 

“Neat? This is one of the coolest things I’ve seen in a while! Think of all the pranks you could pull with such a skill-“ oops. He said that out loud huh? He didn’t intend to reveal his love for practical jokes.. “I-I mean think of all the ways you could use this in general!” Smooth save there, real smooth.. he cringed internally at himself.

Trying to save himself, he tried to switch the subject to the perfectly matched bruise. He pulled up his own sleeve, revealing a nearly identical bruise. “But can I just say wow, your ability to predict people is seriously impressive? I ended up bumping into a suit of armor this morning and hurt my elbow..” And this was not mentioning the time afterwards where he slipped down the staircase…

He lets his shape return to normal, content with having shown off and shocked this kid to his core. Xane figures his ego could always use the little boost.

“Eh… Magvel?” Xane tilts his head to the side, squinting as he tries to think… he’s been to so many lands, drifting here and there for so long… wait, how long has it even been?! He’s sure he must've made landfall there once or twice, but he can’t remember anything about it really. He must not have traveled very far into the continent if at all. “Can’t say I have, what’s it like there? What do you think, should I make it my next destination after learning all I can here?” he folds his arms behind his head and gives Ewan a cheeky grin- oh geez those seems are Creeking. You know what- Xane unfolds his arms and sheds the outer coat from his uniform 

He saw. Himself?

He quickly patted himself to see if he was still in his own body. Was Xane capable of body switching? Wait no, he was still in his own body.. so then… was Xane’s ability to shapeshift? Wow. Wow!

“You can mimic people? That.. is… AMAZING!” He yelled out in excitement. Think of all the practical applications you could use such powerful mimicry for! As well as all the pranks you could pull off..

He took a closer look at his double, impressed by how spot on it was. From his facial features, to his body shape, to even his height. It was a perfect match. “And you said everyone where you came from could do this?! Does that mean.. you could teach me how to do it??” He asked, or rather, hoped. This was such a unique form of magic, and he wanted to know more about it!

“I can’t teach how they did it back where I’m from, but I picked up some spells that do similar stuff so I can teach you a different way. The limit is I can only do humanoids in humanoid forms. A shape made from description or paint wont be as good as seeing the real deal and definitely won’t fool anyone. I’m real good at predicting stuff that I can't see. Like you- you’ve got tons of bumps and scrapes I bet! Especially on your elbows.” Xane leans away from how close the kid is getting and pulls up ‘Ewan’ s sleeve to show he’d mimicked a fading bruise right on the elbow.

Xane answers just as rapid fire as Ewan asks. Admittedly he’s not being… entirely truthful. The reason he can shapeshift isn’t something he will ever talk about if he can help it. He’s not lying about finding similar spells though- in his travels he managed to get his hands on a Nohrian spell book that had some interesting light bending techniques that he adapted. As for the ‘details he can’t see’ bit… he can mimic someone perfectly. Part of the magic he could guess, but anything skin deep no matter what, he has a sixth sense for what it is. He never thinks too hard about it, rather not violate the privacy of who he’s mimicking that much thank you. Further than skin deep it’s for the best if he doesn't worry about it too much.

He also found it interesting how Xane was of a similar background to himself, at least from the sound of it. Growing up in the middle of nowhere, getting caught up in a war, and even having a commander that attends here.. wait. Now that he thought about it, there are a lot of people here that have fought in a war, some even two of them. Huh, what are the odds of that…

“Oh, but- we should probably do that in the training area. You can get in trouble for inappropriate magic usage, so they made a rule that forms of magic that isn’t used for conveniences can only be performed in designated areas..” He shuddered at the times he got in trouble for this. It wasn’t that he was disobedient on purpose! He just.. forgot sometimes. He just hoped his little sparkle trick was considered a convenience, he really didn’t need another punishment….

And so, Ewan took Xane to the training grounds, talking about other locations as he passed them. His explanations were.. passable enough, but the delivery was a little messy. After a bit they finally arrived, and thankfully it seemed to be relatively empty for now.

“Well I can’t be getting into trouble on my first day now can I? lead the way.” he gestures ahead, and follows around while Ewan explains everything. With how unsure he acts, this kid definitely isn’t some kind of trained student outreach of any kind. Xane’s little ‘punishment’ theory is sounding more and more likely with each stumbled explanation and the occasional backtrack to cover something Ewan forgot to mention. Not that he minds, making careful mental notes of everything in comparison to the map. One or two places he notices something that could be amiss, like a secret might be hiding unmarked just beyond an unassuming corner, and he makes careful mental notes of each time he sees this. All the while he keeps up a playful atmosphere towards the kid. He tries to jab at him with teases a few more times, but Ewan seems either oblivious or more mature than Xane had given him credit for ignoring it. He’s fairly certain it’s the former.

When they finally reach the training grounds, he grins. Time to show his stuff! In all his observation of Ewan he is fairly certain he can predict what the kid is going to say at this moment- vital information to complete the effect. As soon as Ewan finishes about the training ground- 

“-show me what you got! I’m really interested in seeing your magic!”

But nope! Ewan’s first impressions of this Xane person was good. His eyes seemed calculating and knowledgeable, maybe even a little distant, but his demeanor and speech were full of energy. He probably had more going on than he was letting on, but Ewan wasn’t the type to pry. Not any more at least. He’d do his best to become friends with Xane, anyway! Last thing he noted was that the man had a slightly unique air to him. It reminded him of Lady Myrrh, just a little bit.

“Nice to meet ya, Xane! I hope we can be good friends!” He said with a cheerful smile, as he grasped Xane’s hand with his two smaller ones, giving a friendly handshake. While he couldn’t quite place it, he had a good feeling about the guy. It made him want to get to know him.

“And yes, i’m a mage! I’ve been studying for years now, the academy being a step in my ultimate goal of succeeding my teacher as both a great sage as well as Guardian of the Great Dragon!” He boasted a little bit, placing both hands on his sides and puffing out his chest with pride. He figured he could try to impress his new friend a little. So far it seemed as if a lot of people really valued that sort of thing.

“But, that’s enough about me. Why don’t you tell me a little about yourself? We can walk around the Monastery in the meantime! Trust me when I say you can get lost just about anywhere, so it’ll be good to get a feel of the layout! Oh! Speaking of…” he started to feel around in his pockets, then his pouch.. uh oh. He was sure he took a map with him…

“But if this is such a huge place, then I’m sure we will need a map huh? Oh! But since you’re my senior, I’m sure you know the layout here by heart, being such an aspiring mage an all” This kid is just handing him ammo to tease him with left and right, Xane’s already having fun and he hasn’t even brought out his favorite trick yet. he grins a bit wider letting Ewan sweat just a little longer… before snickering. “But just to make sure, here” his arms finally drop fully and he pulls out the map of the monastery for students he’d been given with the rest of his academic materials and books. He hands it over to Ewan with an easy going lopsided grin. “Just in case, it’s always good to be prepared!” not a philosophy Xane can say he actually subscribes to, but eh, its better to set a (mostly) good example for kids.

He walks alongside Ewan, head tilted to the side so he can easily look at the kid without feeling too much like he's looking down on him, hands resting on his hips instead of behind his head. “About me huh… well I guess I can give you the highlights~” he winks, and leans back working his mouth a bit while he considers how to begin “Lets see… I’m from a place pretty far away, really in the boonies. I spent a lot of time in the continent of Archanea though, got caught up in a pretty big war that happened back there. Then I heard my old commander ended up here. I figured ‘hey, since I'm in Fodlan, why don’t I go see what he’s up to!’ and here I am!” He decides to stick to the story he gave on his application, easily breezing past the details and giving Ewan a big grin to seal the deal. 

“Punishment Notice:

Student: Ewan

Offense: Blew up classroom BL-4 (again)

Punishment: Take over as tour guide for new students for the coming week”

He didn’t mind guiding a new friend of course, but… did they really have to make him stand around here since dawn?? He’s been waiting for a good 2 hours now with nothing happening. And they knew how much he hated waking up early!

Still, he didn’t want the new student to catch him pouting or grumbling, it would make for a poor first impression. So he kept up a bright and cheerful expression, waiting.. and waiting.. and waiting…

He let out a sigh. This was getting so boring, he was getting sleepy… maybe if he just sat down and.. closed his eyes for a little while…

It was just when he was finally settling down though, that what appeared to be a new student approached the doorway.

“O-Oh! Hello!” He said, as he scrambled to stand up. “You must be the new student, right? Welcome!” He forced out his best smile, despite being somewhat disgruntled.

While he greets his new classmate, he takes stock of him. A shorter kid with a cheerful face- no. Not just short, damage from malnourishment probably. He's seen it plenty of times. Still has baby fat on his face and impeccable taste in headband if Xane says so himself. A cheerful expression, seems like he has a good enough humor, open to pranks perhaps? Xane is confident he could mimic this kid in a heartbeat.

He folds his arm back behind his head and leans back, the feathers on the side of his headband bouncing cheerfully complete the effect even as the seams on his vest protest- Yeah he's definitely shedding this thing the moment he can. Between that and the lapels it wouldn't last 2 weeks on him anyways.

“I take it you're a mage of some kind then? That or you're a good showman.” Xane winks, but it's not like there's any doubt in his mind this kid is a mage. Bright eyed apprentices like this are a dime a dozen if you've been around long enough. Xane's complete initial impression is that this kid is… utterly unremarkable. It's nothing personal of course, he'd just rather not get attached.

Xane fidgets for the nth time with the stiff lapels of his new uniform. He's plenty used to wearing a wide variety of fashions, anything from the most avant garde of nobles to the heavy robes of those of the cloth to the clunky metal of an armor knight, but being stuck in a uniform still never fails to rub him the wrong way. At least with all those other outfits he could retreat back to his normal clothes at a moment's notice, but it’s not like he can shapeshift into himself… Or could he… no, no, stay focused Xane. He shakes himself and double checks the parchment in his hands before looking back up to the towering spires and imposing architecture characteristic of holy buildings just about wherever you go. 

The gates look even larger up close, he knew they would be big from how easily he could see the monastery from afar, but it’s different finally being here.. There are heavy grey clouds swirling around the tips of the roofs, a cold damp layer blanketing the stonework, and the silhouette of a concerning anomaly in the sky that Xane had decided very quickly is Above His Pay Grade Thankyou Very Much, all but the last characteristic of this time of year in Fodlan. That coupled with the guards in clean armor and the increasing amount of holy robes he’d spotted on his way in strikes quite the impression in the early morning light. Yup, this is definitely it.

Not that there is really any room for doubt, traveling from the coast inland after he got his letter of acceptance had given him plenty of opportunities for reconnaissance. That and it would be downright impressive of him if he got all the way to the front gate only to find that ‘no, this is actually the other monastery in the center of Fodlan, he needs the one two roads down and to the left.’ he snorts at his own bad joke and sobers up.

He’s finally arrived, at Garreg Mach Monastery.

Xane folds his arms behind his head to get another good look of the monastery from the outside before he heads on in. Just as he’s about to enter and start exploring, his ears perk up- now what or who could that be?