Going Pro
Chapter 15: Welcome to North Academy
Jesse had slept for a long time on the plane across Russia. It still wasn't the best sleep and he still felt tired when he woke up and it was time to get off at their destination. All he had to do was walk along with the other North Academy students and he found where he was supposed to go just fine. He was thankful for that. If he was alone, he would probably get lost.
The boys got on a helicopter and left soon after arriving. Jesse got a window seat and watched as they drew closer to North Academy's outer wall. It was a lot taller than Jesse expected.
"Wow, cool," Jesse breathed to himself when they approached.
The chancellor was waiting for his arrival and greeted everyone at the gates. "Welcome back, everyone! I hope you all had a refreshing vacation," he greeted and went right up to Jesse. "And you must be Jesse Anderson, I am so glad you decided to join us here at North Academy."
"It's nice to meet you," Jesse smiled.
"Hm, I feel your spiritual energy already, it's practically radiating off you, amazing," the chancellor held up his hands, trying to gesture Jesse's aura. He quickly dropped his hands when Jesse stared at him with a confused expression. "Anyway, I'm Chancellor Foster, and it's my pleasure to welcome you."
"Thank you," Jesse nodded. "I look forward to spending my time here, after I collect forty cards from the surrounding area of course." Jesse was completely willing to tough out that task to show everyone he had what it takes to be at the school like everyone else. He just wasn't willing to exchanging the Crystal Beast deck in any way, shape, or form.
"Don't be silly, you got your deck from a tournament, and that qualifies you to enter," Foster gestured for Jesse to walk with him inside. "And besides, the teachers and I are looking at creating a new system of tests and ways to becoming stronger duelists," he explained. "The new system will likely be tried out in a year or two anyway."
"Why do I have a feeling you're putting together something even more dangerous?" Jesse asked.
Foster laughed. "Don't be silly! We are competing with Duel Academy here, so we need up our reputation by being not only excellent, but also welcoming. I don't want this school to be the student's second choice, it must be their first!"
Jesse thought that sounded like a lofty goal, considering he had been here for all of ten minutes and he was already freezing. It was not exactly the most welcoming of environments because of the climate alone. He even thought he would handle the cold better coming from Scandinavia.
"Now let's get you settled in and into a North Academy jacket, trust me, you'll feel a lot better once you're wearing one of these," Foster gestured the coats the other students were already wearing.
Jesse put his luggage in his new dorm room at the Celtic Guardian cabin. Then he was off to get his coat and class schedule. The coats were based off of dorm cabin, which turned out to be based on where they came from in the world. This was because of common language and tastes for food, which in turn prevented many students from feeling as homesick when they were able to eat the meals of their culture more often.
Jesse immediately put on his new brown coat over his regular clothes and even his blue vest and instantly felt warmer. He liked it. It was quite comfortable.
Then he got his picture taken for his ID and the physical copy was printed off right there for him. He met the teachers and Chancellor Foster spoke with him some more. Mostly about how he was expected to do well at this school, but he and the teachers knew it may make some time to adjust since he was starting in the middle of the year, unlike the other students. He had a lot of catching up to do, and had to be prepared to study if he wanted to do well or exceed on the written tests, which were just as important as duel record and skill.
Last, he received his books and syllabi for his classes. One teacher had even included a study guide to what was covered last term and would be referenced this term. Jesse knew he had a lot of work ahead of him.
By the time he got back to his room and dumped the books and papers on his desk, he was feeling hungry. He wanted to unpack before finding something to eat. If all else failed, he had a box of snack bars in his luggage. His bed was already dressed, but he added his own blanket from home to the bedding. He had a feeling he would need it to stay warm with how cold he knew it was going to get at night.
As he was unpacking, Ray burst into his room unannounced. "Hey Jesse!" he exclaimed in greeting. "We're in the same cabin, how cool is that? I thought for sure you'd take The Chazz's old room, but this is so cool!" Ray continued excitably. "Are you hungry yet? If so, then we should get something at the cafeteria!"
Jesse kind of wanted to tell him to not burst in like that next time, but couldn't bring himself to say it. "That sounds like a good idea," Jesse smiled politely and stood up. He could finish unpacking later.
He had been shown where the cafeteria was while he was getting his things ready with Foster, but he found he forgot already. He walked with Ray and they met up with Sean and Evan from the plane along the way.
Jesse was impressed with the diversity of the cafeteria selection. He thought he could get just about anything he felt like here. It took him a few minutes to look through and decide what he wanted. He wasn't a picky eater at all, but tended to prefer simple foods. Ray got his meal quickly and had passed by Jesse as he went to sit down. Jesse watched where he sat and then Ray waved to him and mouthed for him to hurry up. Ray had got fish and rice, so Jesse got the same. His was grilled and it smelled good. He was fine with just water to drink so he got that to make things simple, even though there were many options once again.
Jesse sat down across from Ray who started to babble about this and that. Jesse listened as he occupied his mouth with this meal, so he didn't add to the conversation much, not that he needed to, Ray seemed to be able to talk nonstop. Sean and Evan even sat next to them and simply listened to Ray as if he was just a television or radio telling one story after another.
"So I don't actually know how that happens, but one of my friends said they heard it was a spiritual phenomenon while my brother said it was my eyes playing tricks on me because the brain naturally fills in the gaps with whatever makes sense to it, cool right?" Ray said and took a huge mouthful rice and paused to eat for a while.
"So what do you think of the campus so far, Jesse?" Sean asked.
"From what I've seen it seems alright, no complaints," Jesse smiled. "The cafeteria selection seems great though," he grinned.
"Yeah, it's pretty good, I just wish it was open all the time," Sean said. "If you're hungry during off hours or late at night, there's plenty of supplies back at the cabin for snacks or impromptu meals too, just remember to mark when something either get used up or expires on the thing on the fridge so it can be restocked when the staff comes through."
"Since there aren't any stores around, they make sure to order things we'll need ahead of time and everything's free to use, well, it's included in the tuition," Evan said. "If you brought anything from home though, you should keep it in your room, otherwise the guys will eat it."
"Will do," Jesse nodded. With the number of teenaged boys at this school, they probably get regular shipments of just food supplies. "By the way, is there a gym here?" Jesse asked. "I wasn't shown one on my brief tour as I was getting my books and stuff."
"Oh yeah," Sean answered. "Both a regular gym for sports and then there's the equipment room where all the machines and weights are."
Jesse nodded in understanding. "That's cool," he said. He thought he should learn where that was soon so he could work off some nerves. "Is it always open or just for classes?" he asked.
"Always open," Sean confirmed. "Sometimes when anyone starts fighting, a teacher or a senior will tell them to work if off in the gym instead. It keeps things from getting ugly when a duel won't settle it."
"Does that happen often?" Jesse asked.
The other guys shook their heads. "Not really often," Sean answered first. "But it does happen."
Jesse was done eating soon after that and returned his dishes to the drop off counter. He was certain he saw the cafeteria operating hours in his guide book now that he tried to think of it. That was something he was going to have to memorize quickly so he doesn't go hungry. He liked that there was a kitchenette in the cabins, but Jesse still didn't trust himself to cook anything but simple noodles. If there were enough supplies for sandwiches, he would be safe. The last thing he needed was to set his cabin on fire right after transferring here and getting kicked out because of it.
When he returned to his cabin so he could finish arranging his room, he saw a boy in the common area wearing a long black coat instead of the brown one he was wearing. Upon closer inspection, he noticed the boy was Asian, not Scandinavian like the he and the other boys he already met.
The boy saw him and waved. "Hi, you must be Jesse Anderson," he started. He was somewhat short and most of his hair was combed back, but he had a large lock of hair hanging in front. "I am Keisuke, I was hoping to run into you," he said.
"Nice to meet you," Jesse said.
"Are you hoping to become the top student here?"
Jesse tilted his head to the side. "That should be everyone's goal, shouldn't it?" he chuckled.
"Ha, guess you're right," Keisuke scratched his face for a second. "It's going to be pretty hard to top The Chazz though, even if you're better than Czar," he said.
"Who's Czar?" Jesse asked. He didn't know any pro duelist by that name.
"He was the top duelist around here before The Chazz came," Keisuke explained.
"He must be a powerful duelist, maybe I will duel him someday too," Jesse smiled.
"Wow, you're really laid-back, aren't you? Most people wouldn't want to go up against the best in the school so fast."
Jesse didn't know what to say. "What can I say? I love dueling, and meeting other strong duelists to duel is always a treat, win or lose, because it should be fun regardless of skill."
Keisuke seemed pleased with that answer. "You have a point there," he said. "I'll let you get back to it then, I need to get settled back in too." Keisuke waved before leaving the cabin.
Classes didn't start until Monday, and many more students were going to be returning from break over the next couple days. From the looks of it, this cabin had all its occupants already with only six separate rooms. Jesse learned it was one of the smaller cabins, but also fairly cozy with a very nice common room with a fireplace. It was going to get cold fast at night, so the cabins did what they could to provide extra heat, because even though the cabins were built well to withstand the cold winds, they still weren't always comfortably warm, especially when the occupants were in class all day.
Jesse thought his room was kind of stale, so he opened the single window just a crack. He could feel the cold coming in fast, so he planned to close it as soon as the air was a little fresher. In the meantime, he finished unpacking and sorting his things. The room felt a little empty compared to his room back home, and even that room was bland.
After he closed the window and sat down on his head, he remembered what was missing. He retrieved his deck from it holder and held it up. "What do think everybody?" he asked.
One by one, the Crystal Beasts appeared in his new room. Ruby Carbuncle hopped up onto his shoulder and Amethyst Cat jumped on his bed to lie down next to him, effectively claiming her spot.
"I think it'll be great, Jesse," Sapphire Pegasus started. "You're sure to learn a lot here." Jesse smiled at that.
"It'll take a little while to get used to it here," Cobalt Eagle added.
"My mental clock is all messed up now," Amber Mammoth whined.
"We did travel a long way," Jesse said.
"I'm sure we will all get used to it after a while," Emerald Tortoise said from inside his shell.
"Why are you hiding in there?" Jesse asked humorously.
"Everything is so different and I can feel the cold," he said and poked his head out a little.
"Really? Even you guys can feel the cold?" Jesse wondered.
"I think he's more susceptible to the change in temperature because of his nature," Topaz Tiger said.
"So it's because he's a reptile type?" Jesse said and they nodded. "How do you feel?" he asked the others.
"We're alright, especially in here," Sapphire Pegasus said.
"Fascinating," Jesse nodded. "Let me know if you start to feel anything or get uncomfortable, and Emerald Tortoise, are you going to be okay?"
"I'll be fine, Jesse, don't worry about me, I just need to adjust at my own pace," Emerald Tortoise said.
Many of the spirits returned to the deck after a few seconds and Jesse yawned. He was tired. His own bodily clock was all messed up as well, and he knew it would take a little bit of time to readjust. It was probably why he and his housemates were already back before most of the other students.
After getting ready for bed, he sat down at his desk and opened his laptop to draft an email to Julia back home. He wasn't connected to any internet yet, so he couldn't send it, but he knew the network password was somewhere in his handbook or other papers he received. He just didn't feel like digging for it and possibly running into errors when he was already so tired. He knew there was going to be plenty more to tell Julia so he was going to leave room so he would remember to add more later on.
Once he decided he typed enough, he turned off the light and went to bed. He wasn't sure what time it was, but he didn't care. It was sometime in the early evening. He just needed to get some rest and start fresh when he woke up so he crunch through a ton of studying he had waiting for him.
Jesse was very comfortable when he started to wake up. It was warm under the covers. He most certainly didn't want to get up to study of all things. Just when he was about to fall asleep again, there was a rhythmic knocking at his door. It was obviously a specific tune, even though Jesse didn't know what it was from.
"What is it?" Jesse called towards the door.
"Are you awake?" Ray's voice asked through the door.
"Yeah, kind of," Jesse sat up.
"I'm coming in," Ray announced. Jesse wished the other boy would ask instead of announce. Before Jesse could tell him to wait a minute, the blond boy entered the room and stood in the doorway.
"What's up, Ray?" Jesse said as he moved to sit on the edge of his bed. The floor was still cold from the room being unlived in for some time.
"I was checking to see if you were up yet so we could go get breakfast," Ray smiled. "Breakfast is the best!" His green eyes almost sparkled at the thought of various breakfast foods.
Jesse ran his fingers through his hair and covered a yawn. "Sure, that sounds good, just give a few minutes to get ready," he said.
"Sure thing!" Ray jumped out the door and closed it behind him.
At breakfast, Jesse got a pile of scrambled eggs and some toast. He also got some hot tea by getting hot water at the dispenser and his choice of which tea bag flavor. Jesse noted how empty the cafeteria appeared to be compared to yesterday afternoon when he ate with the others.
"What time is it?" Jesse asked.
"It's…" Ray looked at his wristwatch. "Seven-thirty in the morning," he said.
"We're up early when there's no class," Jesse frowned.
"Yeah, I know, but I noticed you went to bed early last night because when I went to my room, I saw your light was off under the door– that sounds kind of creepy though– I mean I wasn't spying, I just happened to notice, because I happened to be going to bed early last night too because of the jetlag," Ray said quickly and then started eating.
Jesse simply nodded. He did note that he would have to start locking his door, or get a chain, or put his chair in front of the door so people couldn't just walk in.
As he was eating, he saw Sean enter and approach them. Sean went right up to Ray and smacked him upside the head.
"Ouch! Sean!" Ray whined.
"That's for being so noisy so early in the morning, I could hear you from my room," Sean huffed. His brown eyebrows were scrunched up under his orange bangs. "And how about you stop bothering Jesse so much?"
"What? I'm not bothering him!" Ray defended and Jesse laughed nervously.
"Whatever lamebrain, I'll be right back," Sean said and moved to get his breakfast.
"Oh, I forgot to show Sean that card I was going to get over break, I have it in my deck now," Ray said.
"Are you friends?" Jesse asked.
"Yeah, why?" Ray tilted his head to the side.
"Nothing, just wondering," Jesse said as he went back to eating. Jesse wasn't so sure how close Ray and Sean were, especially when Sean sat down next to Ray and Ray punched him in the arm.
"That's for calling me a lamebrain, stupid," Ray remarked.
"I call you one because you are one," Sean pulled down his lower eyelid.
"Well you're stupid," Ray shot back.
"I get better grades than you!"
"Um…" Jesse started with a confused look. The other two boys stopped.
"Oh, sorry," Ray laughed it off.
"I told you that you were bothering him," Sean muttered.
"Everything was fine until you showed up, you're the one bothering him," Ray retorted.
"Guys," Jesse started before they could get loud again. "It's fine, I just want to eat calmly right now." The other two boys nodded and they all got through most of their food before Jesse decided to make normal conversation. "So how did you two meet and become friends?"
They had to stop to think. Sean was first to respond. "I think we met at the entrance exam back home, then we were in the same group for orientation when we got here, so by the time we found out we were in the same cabin too, we were pretty much friends."
Jesse felt like he missed out on that beginning of the year experience by coming in as a transfer midway through the year. However, he seemed to be getting along fine with the people he met so far.
"Hey Jesse, are you into yuri?" Sean asked directly.
Jesse choked on his tea. "W-what? Why?"
"Ha, so you know what it is," Sean grinned and Jesse's cheeks burned. "Just so you know, the school's network blocks all the good stuff, you know what I mean? So if you find you need some contraband material, just come to me, but make sure staff doesn't find out about it or the whole cabin will get punished," Sean whispered.
Jesse stuttered as he tried to think of the appropriate response. "Thanks?" he offered. He wouldn't tell anybody about it anyway, especially staff. "I uh, will keep that in mind."
"Why do you always ask the guys if they like yuri?" Ray huffed.
"Because it's awesome," Sean fisted his hand with determination.
"Nah man, swimwear is the best, all bikini, halters, boyshorts, anything, they're all great," Ray pressed.
"Two girls, can't get better than that," Sean said.
"On the beach, by the pool, in the showers, on a racetrack, just swimwear, can't get enough of it," Ray continued.
Jesse was getting uncomfortable. He was able to get up, return his dishes, and leave while the other two continued on. He was finished eating anyway and he had a lot to do today so it was time for him to be on his way.
"What were they talking about?" Cobalt Eagle asked as Jesse headed back to his cabin.
"It's not important, you don't need to know." Jesse's ears were blushing.
"Then why are you getting embarrassed?" Amethyst Cat laughed.
"N-nothing, just forget about it," Jesse tried and walked quicker. Not that his walking speed mattered when it came to the Crystal Beasts since they were attached to his deck.
Jesse hurried back to his room and distracted himself with his books and studies. He hoped to be able to duel soon, but he knew there was more material for class to catch up on and how that should take priority right now. The first term's material wasn't as difficult as he thought it would be. There was just a lot of it and he didn't want to miss anything. At the rate he was going by the time he was done for the day, he knew it was going to take the rest of the week to catch up before classes started again. With Pegasus behind him and a pro career ahead of him, he knew he didn't have room to slack off and he was to work his hardest and do well here, no matter how much he hated sitting in classrooms and studying. As long as he got to duel a lot soon, he decided it would be worth it.
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Author's Note:
Sorry about all the new characters here. We'll get to know each one a little at a time to make it easier to remember them. I really wish we knew more about North Academy. Each known character from the series will eventually make appearances. Keisuke is canon; I just gave him a name since I couldn't find one for him, so I'm pretending he's Japanese. He's the kid that was always around Czar, short and thin, and wears the same (or very similar) coat as Chazz/Manjoume, and had a really weird childlike voice in the dub.
