deathsmajesty | Strixhaven Campus, Arcavios, Friday (Fandom Time)

For once, Liliana hadn't made too much of a fuss getting up early. Today was the Midsummer Music Festival at her alma mater, Strixhaven University, and as a thank you to Prompto for finishing the job of teaching her to drive, she had invited him to go see it. Which, of course, had turned into an invitation to his family, and there was no way that Ignis wasn't going to come along, and also no way that Prompto would stand for leaving anyone out, and so it was a merry party of seven that stepped through the portal. Liliana had asked folks to wear nothing too Earth modern and explained that very few people, if anybody, they would meet knew about other planes (many, many, many Quandrix theories aside) and to please keep it that way. Once any questions were out of the way, they stepped through a portal...

...And onto into a large walkway made from gleaming white stone. A short staircase led up to a park, full of greenery, fountains, and comfortable benches. In the center of the park was an imposing statue of a magic user made of white marble and curving over its head was a arc of huge stones, the largest easily hundreds of feet long, hanging in the air in a perfect arch. Above them shone two suns, beaming brightly down, though the heat was not particularly oppressive. The area was crowded with people, though there was still enough room for people to walk without being pressed against anyone else. "Welcome to the Archway Commons," Liliana said, possibly grinning more broadly than any of them had ever experienced, save Ignis. "So named because of the star arch above there - the second largest star arch on campus. The largest is the Dawnbow, over the Bibloplex. Star arches get their name from their irregular spokes evoke the radiating lines of a shining celestial star. They're found all over Arcavios, made from spokes of natural materials that float in an arch shape, with a precise inner curve and a rough and irregular outer arch. They can stand straight or lie at an angle; they can be small or enormous, whole or broken, grown over or mysteriously clean. Their origins are a mystery lost to the Dawning Age, though many people have said that they've seen an arch appear to them at a critical juncture in their lives, helping them understand a lesson or answer a burning question in their mind." She laughed. "It's important to note that I've never had a star arch manifest in front of me, so I can't say for certain how accurate that is, but there are plenty of theories about them."

Arm laced through Ignis', she led them forward through the central campus, pointing out various landmarks, though there were a few that she clearly didn't recognize, like the Strixhaven Stadium where it seemed like some kind of game was underway, the stands maybe half full of cheering people. The large crowds continued as they went along, an excitement in the air.

"I see the popularity of the Midsummer Music Festival has grown since I was a student here," Liliana said with an almost apologetic smile. Almost. Liliana Vess didn't apologize. "It was large even then but not like this!" Strange what a difference almost two hundred years could make. "Anyway, I brought us early enough that we'd have enough time for quick tours around the other college campuses if you'd like? We can also go right to Prismari, there's plenty to explore there and we can get set up."

[For thems what are here! NFB for awayness.]

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Bah! Most of the time they'd gotten into trouble, they'd been going to places where they expected it. Maybe not the magnitude or scope, but they'd often been prepared for something.

But Strixhaven was different. Strixhaven was peaceful. Protected. Safe.

...Don't worry, that, like her pure happiness from being here, would absolutely be ruined! But not today.

"The Colleges are actually named after the dragons that founded them," Liliana said. "Galazeth Prismari, Beledros Witherbloom, Shadrix Silverquill, Tanazir Quandrix, and, Velomachus Lorehold." She took a moment to preen slightly. A decade or two shy of two centuries and she could still name all five without missing a beat. "They were the first beings on the plane to explore not only the tensions inherent within the enemy mana color combinations, but the ways in which they complemented each other, too. After the devastation of the Blood Age, they realized that only through disciplined study would magic be in safe hands. So, centuries ago, they each founded a college devoted to the study of the mana dichotomy they found most fascinating, with an overall institution that united them." She waved a hand around. "And here we are."

Did the grandeur make a little more sense knowing that dragons were involved, Gladio?

"But you'll love Lorehold because it's the College devoted to history. With a particular emphasis on military history. They live it, breathe it, fling themselves from hundreds of feet in the air to dive down into it..."

They were absolutely going to have to drag him out of there.

Good thing there were so many of you, too, because big as he was....that was going to be quite the task to drag him anywhere.

Because, yeah, this kind of thing? If Liliana's words were a salad, Gladio would want to toss them all in a blender so he could just slurp them all up with a spoon. Maybe it was just the fact that his whole position in his life had been so centered around deep history and lore, gods and kings and lineage being passed down generation after generation, but this was the sort of thing that stirred something up inside of him that few things that weren't dehydrated noodles in styrofoam cups could. So there was a grin on his face as Liliana divulged all this information to him, his eyes wandering around the place with a sort of newfound appreciation.

Because, yeah. Yeah. They didn't even need to be dragons, but knowing the why behind all this, and that there was a why like that....did make the grandeur make sense.

Then he snorted.

"Sounds like a pretty good time, if you ask me. I like a little bit of more interactive learning."

Liliana's plan was to just find a team of young luxodon and pay them to do it. Strength was her dump stat, Gladio, she had no intention of lugging anything, least of all you.

"You might even get to be part of a pastraiser tour," she noted. You know, idly and for no reason, certainly not for any gleams in any eyes that might or might not be there. "Pastraisers find and converse with ghosts and, if the ghosts consent, bind them into the monuments that bear their likeness, conversing with them to learn about their lives and their histories, so there are always primary sources available for students to speak to. And learning how to listen to an accounting of an event and winnowing actual facts from them is - or was, I suppose - a full year course for students entering Lorehold for the first time."

Because even being a primary source didn't make one a reliable witness.

"If a ghost gets tired of their position and just wants to rest, the pastraisers remove them from their statues and do their best to honor the spirit's wishes, and the statues get moved to a place of honor in Kollema Hall, with a collection of the knowledge they'd provided the College with bound and available beside it, and given the title Professor Emeritus." She smiled a bit. "I spent a summer working with and eventually as a pastraiser as part of my necromancy training."

Edited 2024-09-13 16:24 (UTC)

And there was another faint snort, more of a huff this time, as Gladio considered all of that, especially in light of his own past deals with learning from the dead. The tombs of kings and the Tempering Grounds and the weight of over a hundred previous Amicitia's etched into his shoulders in ink.

"Makes sense," he said. "Who better to learn history from than those who were there in the first place?"

And then he thought of Ardyn.

"Good way to make sure it doesn't come back later to haunt you, too."

His attention then drifted, not to the grandeur of the school around him again, but just a little bit over, toward where Ignis and Prompto were at that time, the former looking very grave and serious as he listened to Noctra squealing excitedly about something while the latter was just doing his best not to laugh and snapping a picture.

"You can definitely learn a lot from ghosts," he mused, both metaphorically and literally. "Pretty cool that they've got a whole thing here based around that idea."

"The necromancer concurs," Liliana said, amused. "But yes. All the Colleges explore paired dichotemies, and Lorehold looks at things like, 'what truly drives history, the actions of groups or the actions of single people' and 'is it the structures or relationships that we forge that change society'? As always, the answer winds up being somewhere in the middle, but it's a useful lens to focus through."

She looked at him, then back to the group at large. "You would have done well here," she said. "You all would. I mean, obviously, no magic and you three wouldn't have come even if you could, but..." She shook her head, content to let the rest of it remain unspoken. "I'm pleased to hear at least some of my school meets with your approval, Beefslab."

Too much sincerity. Back to sass.

Strixhaven Campus, Arcavios, Friday (Fandom Time)

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