The Fifth Bag Slot: Excavation 101
In which much back-story is presented upfront, and our two protagonists meet and are frankly unimpressed with each other.
Anchor the Storm (so named for the hailstorm of arrows he once sent raining down on a marauding band of the Sons of Svanir) had never felt so out of place before. His cozy fur garments had been replaced by a blue cloth robe, and he'd exchanged his beloved bow and quiver for a stack of thick books. Despite seeing his fellow norn, and even the occasional charr, wandering the Durmand Priory halls around him, Anchor felt like a Jotun at a tea party. Always the braggart, always the last one to leave the moot – but, he had to remind himself, he was not that man anymore. No, the man he wanted to be was dead.
His grandfather, wise and selfless for as long as Anchor had known him, had passed away peacefully. It wasn't until after he was gone that Anchor realized how important his grandfather had been; not only to him, but to his entire village. Fights broke out more often now; there were disputes over hunting rights and gossip that wounded egos and created hostility. Anchor, well-liked and respected in the village, had tried to step up as a sort of leader. He'd tried to settle the arguments and restore the community. But no matter how friendly his speeches or unshakeable his threats, he simply could not be what his people needed, and it frustrated him.
And so it was that Anchor decided to change everything about his life and about himself. He gave up the hunt for glory and took up the hunt for wisdom. He would be the type of man his grandfather was; his first step: joining the Durmand Priory. He was determined and resolved, but so far, things hadn't been very easy…or very fun.
He arrived early to his first class: "Excavation 101." Some students were waiting patiently while others began to file into the room. Conscious of people staring at him, Anchor awkwardly shuffled through the rows of desks to the back, where several larger desks that looked made for norn or charr were available. He sat and shuffled his books and pencils around for a moment, then risked a glance towards the charr student seated on his left. Her head was bowed and she stared unblinkingly at the surface of her desk, muttering a constant stream of noises to herself that Anchor couldn't quite make out. He quickly looked away and wondered if he'd made a bad seating choice.
His attention was soon elsewhere when another student entered the room. A dark haired asura with bright yellow eyes took a quick survey of the classroom, and then headed straight towards Anchor's row. He stared at her in disbelief as she made herself comfortable in the extra-large desk to his right. As a self-appointed wise future leader of the norn, Anchor felt compelled to say something:
"Isn't that chair a little big for you?"
The asura looked at him, seeming to scan him from head to toe, and then said simply: "Small spaces are not conducive to big-picture thinking."
That seemed to be the end of the conversation, and Anchor had just resigned himself to being sat between injustice and insanity, when the asura suddenly deemed him worthy of her attention once more. She turned, a wide and rather creepy smile stretched across her face. "My name is Aize, what's yours?"
"Anchor the Storm." Anchor answered guardedly.
"Oh, how…picturesque." Aize said through pointy white teeth. "How long have you been enrolled at the Priory?"
"This is my first day." Anchor replied.
"Oh." The asura's smile dropped instantly as though he had given her the wrong answer. Before anything more could be said though, their teacher arrived at the front of the room.
"Good morning, future scholars and explorers!" the teacher greeted, and Anchor's first Priory class began.
Anchor closed his dorm room door behind him and flopped face first onto his bed. His brain was fried. He couldn't do this. He just wasn't cut out for it –
No. He sat up, smoothed back the long red hair on his head and face, and took a calming breath. He could do this. This was a challenge, and he loved challenges, he reminded himself. Tonight, he was going to find the closest place that served beer and he was going to get through this.
As he was debating whether or not he could wear his furs again now that the day's classes were over, a knock sounded at his door. Curious, he opened it, but there was no one there.
"Ehem."
Anchor looked straight down and discovered Aize waiting on his doorstep. Judging by the scowl on her face, she wasn't any happier to see him than he was to see her.
"I require your assistance," she said at length.
"With what?" Anchor asked bluntly, wondering how she'd found his room.
Aize sighed, rolled her eyes, and then her entire demeanor did a sudden one-eighty degree turn. That creepy, over-stretched smile was back. "Someone of your intelligence and altitude could surely satisfy my requirement for assistance of the vertical kind," she said in a sugary sweet tone.
It was all Anchor could do not to slam the door and hide in his room, away from this creature. As it was, he figured that maybe if he just did what she wanted, she would leave him alone. "Uh, what is it, exactly, that you want again?" He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"This way. Please." Aize said sweetly.
He followed the asura down the halls, up a flight of stairs into the girls' dorm room area. Aize invited him into her room, and then pointed to a stack of books on a high shelf.
"There." Aize said. "My roommate has displayed signs of jealously towards my intelligence. Out of spite, she has relocated my books to that shelf, which was designed without forethought to racial accommodation."
"Oh, you want me to reach your books for you." Whoever this roommate was, Anchor doubted that placing books on a bookshelf counted as a 'spiteful.' He easily brought them down. "Here you go."
"Thank you. I was nearly unable to complete our reading assignment, your assistance is appreciated."
Anchor was just about to say 'you're welcome' and leave, when something clicked: "Reading assignment?"
"Yes."
"How can there be a reading assignment; I just got my books today!" Anchor wiped a hand across his face. "How many chapters?"
"Five."
"Five!"Panic was starting to make his normally deep voice a few octaves higher. "Well- okay, alright, how many pages is a chapter?"
Aize raised an eyebrow at him. "It's really not that difficult. Basic geology – ground types and their optimal excavation procedures, that's all it is."
Her words only made Anchor feel more overwhelmed. He groaned and wondered if this meant skipping tonight's beer. Or maybe his situation called for more beer…
"I suppose," Aize tilted her head at him. "I suppose I could sum it up for you. Since you helped me."
It was a desperate norn that agreed to listen to an asura lecture, but Anchor knew he'd be a fool to turn down the offer.
By the end of the night, lying awake in his new dorm bed, Anchor felt good. It wasn't a feeling brought on by beer, or by boasting to a tavern filled with warm bodies. It was a different kind of satisfaction. Even after one day, Anchor felt like a better person. He'd stuck to his resolutions; his head was sore, but it was sore like a muscle after a good work out. Maybe this lifestyle wasn't fun like being free of responsibilities was fun, but maybe, Anchor reflected, maybe it could be worth it.
A/N: Feedback is always appreciated!