"...After that, we were saved by the timely appearance of our instructor and board director and got treated to a fancy dinner for our troubles. We returned to Trista the following morning." Morgan paused to take a breath. "And that's my trip to Bareahard in a nutshell! Totally normal and uneventful, right?"

"Oh, I'll say." Misty took a sip of peppermint tea. "You're, what, two for two on being in the center of crazy things during your field studies? Honestly, you've seen more things in the span of two months than some of my colleagues have in years!"

"What can I say? Sometimes I think the whole world is out to get me." Morgan sighed into her coffee. "I must be cursed…"

"Maybe you are. And believe me, I know a few things about curses."

"Really?"

"Probably not the same kind of curse you're thinking about, though," Misty answered vaguely. "By the way, sorry if I'm barging in on your private life, but have you been getting enough sleep lately?"

"Huh?" Morgan was slightly confused by the radio hostess's question. "Actually, I have been staying up later. Why do you ask?"

"Well, your hair's looking a little messier than usual," the radio hostess pointed out. "I was wondering how you managed to grow a cowlick since the last time we met."

"Is it really that bad?" Morgan patted the top of her hair.

"Eh, don't sweat it. It's kind of cute, in a way." Misty giggled to herself. "So? Care to explain why you're staying up? You haven't been going out into town late at night, have you?"

Morgan shook her head. "Midterms are coming up."

"Oh." Misty nodded understandingly. "I guess it IS that time of year."

"Yeeeup."

"The bane of students everywhere?"

"Mhmm."

"And how've you been keeping up with your studies?"

"Things aren't too bad, all things considered," Morgan answered. "I have my strong and weak points, though."

"Don't we all?" Misty smirked. "Now that I think about it, it's been a while since the last time I picked up a textbook."

"What was your favorite subject?"

"Well, I've always had a soft spot for the finer arts like music," she replied. "But you know what my best subject was? Erebonian history."

That surprised Morgan. "Really?"

"Uh-huh. Bet you weren't expecting that, did you?"

"Pop quiz!" Morgan announced. "When did Emperor Dreichels bring the War of the Lions to an end?"

Not even a few seconds later, Misty gave her answer: "July 952."

"Not bad." Morgan nodded, impressed that the radio hostess got the right answer. "Guess you've still got it."

Misty gave a mock bow in her chair. "Well, there are a few tricks to it. Case in point, there's an old legend that mentions it was raining in Heimdallr when Dreichels went to liberate it, but the moment he set foot into the capital, the rain stopped. Incidentally, July is usually when the rainy season stops around these parts, so it all adds up."

"Interesting…" Morgan remarked. "Did that really happen?"

She shrugged. "Who knows? You'll have to ask someone who lived through all that. The point is, finding little stories that relate to what you know can help improve your history experience."

"That's a neat trick. I'll be sure to try that."

"Oh, and speaking of rain…" Misty looked out the window. "Something tells me we're going to get a downpour later today."

"But it's sunny right now," Morgan remarked. Indeed, the sky was clear without a cloud in the sky.

"Just because it's sunny now doesn't mean it'll stay that way," the bespectacled woman said. "You might want to go back to your dorm and grab your umbrella."

"How come you sound so sure?" Morgan wondered.

"Call it a woman's intuition." Misty adjusted her glasses by the corner. "Trust me on this one."

"Well, I guess I still have some time before first period…" Morgan finished her coffee and left some mira on the counter. "'A good tactician has nothing to fear', right?"

"Have a nice day at school." Misty waved Morgan good-bye as she headed for the exit. "Enjoy this calm before the storm approaches…"

"Well, what do you know?" Morgan remarked, looking out the window. "It really did start raining."

As Misty had forecasted, the clear weather that had been present earlier had seemingly vanished. Rain pelted the windows of the classroom and the sky was blanketed with gray clouds.

"Focus, Morgan…" Machias said.

"Right." Morgan turned her direction back to the question at hand. "If you bite something and you die, it's poisonous. If that something bites you and you die, it's venomous."

"Not the way I would have worded it, but that's the basic idea." Machias was about to ask the next quiz question when he noticed Elliot raising his hand. "Yes? Do you have a question, Elliot?"

"What if I bite it and it dies?" he asked.

"Then that would mean that you're venomous." He then saw another person raise their hand. "Yes, Fie?"

"What if it bites itself and I die?"

"I'm not sure that's relevant…"

"But to answer your question, Fie…" Emma piped up. "That would be voodoo. It's an ancient ritual commonly associated with witches and shamans. I read about it in a book once."

Alisa raised her hand, looking to continue the trend. "What if something bites me and someone else dies?"

"That's correlation, not causation," Gaius responded. "Just because something happened to you does not necessarily mean that it can apply to someone else."

"What if we bit each other and neither of us die?" Rean asked without being called on.

"I believe we have crossed enough lines as is." Jusis shook his head in exasperation. "I'll ask the next question: 'The Middle Ages' War of the Lions was brought to an end by Emperor Dreichels. When and where did the war end?'" He looked to the person sitting to the right of Morgan. "Would you care to give us an answer, Gaius?"

"Hmm…" Gaius, whose weakest subject was Erebonian history, took a moment to think. "I know the where: the last place Dreichels liberated on his journey was the capital of Heimdallr. I'm having trouble remembering the when…" Disgruntled that he couldn't remember the date, he gave a guess. "Is it August 952?"

"You were close," Jusis said. "The correct answer was July in the year 952 of the Septian Calendar."

"I can't memorize things like this…" Fie offhandedly commented. "It's all pointless in the end."

"F-Fie, that seems a little harsh…" Emma responded. "You know, there's a trick I learned to remembering this one. July is usually around the time the rainy season ends, right? Well, according one legend-"

"It was raining when Dreichels came to liberate Heimdallr, but when he set foot into the capital, the rain stopped," Morgan recited. "Was that what you were about to say, Emma?"

Emma looked genuinely shocked, which was a rare sight to see. "How do you know about that?"

Morgan shrugged. "A friend of mine told me about it. Guess it's a well-known legend?"

The bespectacled class president cleared her throat to compose herself. "R-Right, I'm sure that must be it…"

"Well, that was the last question I had planned," Machias said, calling everyone to attention. "If anyone has anything else they want to ask, speak now or forever hold your peace."

No one did, so Machias promptly adjourned the group study session.

"I have to say, studying in a large group like this makes for a nice change of pace," Alisa remarked. "It's a shame Laura wasn't able to join us."

"She said that she wanted to do some studying by herself," Rean recounted. "I wonder where she is now."

"If she's not in another classroom, then maybe she's in the library?" Emma guessed.

As the other students discussed Laura's whereabouts, Morgan caught a glimpse of their youngest member slipping out the door without them knowing. She hastily grabbed her belongings and followed her classmate.

"Fie, wait!" Morgan called out to the former jaeger. "Are you heading back to the dorm?"

Fie shook her head. "Just heading down to the infirmary."

"The infirmary?" Morgan half-exclaimed. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Just want to nap," she replied. "Studying wears me out. It's raining outside, so I'll borrow one of the beds."

"Is that okay with Instructor Beatrix?"

"She lets me do it all the time."

"Alright, then…" If there was one person that could be trusted with watching over a sleeping student, it was most certainly the school nurse. "Just make sure she wakes you up in time for dinner."

Fie nodded dejectedly.

"Something else on your mind?" Morgan asked.

"...Laura's the one who should've been there, not me."

"Fie…" Morgan frowned. "You shouldn't say things like that in public."

"But it's true," Fie insisted. "If I had left first, she would've stayed around. The study session would've been more productive if someone like me wasn't there-"

"Fie." Morgan put her hands on the younger student's shoulders. "We talked about this, right? Even though our pasts make us different from the others, what matters right now is that we're trying to improve ourselves in the present. There's no shame in being honest about asking for help."

"Maybe for you," she said. "Some people just don't see it that way."

"If this is about Laura, then I'm sure she'll understand-"

"It's not just her," Fie interrupted. "Listen, I overheard some nobles the other day. They were talking about how a murderer was on the loose in the school. It won't be long until everyone else knows. When that happens…"

Morgan looked to the left, to the right, and behind her. Then, she lowered herself to Fie's height and whispered, "Fie, do you trust us?"

The silver-haired girl pursed her lips before nodding her head.

"Then try to have a little more faith in us. I mean, have you seen our roster?" Morgan began to list the members of their class. "We have two sword fanatics, two of the academy's smartest students, a son of one of the Four Great Houses, an out-of-place musician, a foreign exchange student, an orbal science expert with a letter for a last name, and an alcoholic for a homeroom teacher. We're pretty much a stirring pot for all sorts of rumors."

Fie snorted. "Well, when you put it like that…"

"The point is, singling yourself out will only add to the problem; that's why it's more important than ever to stick with us. Show them that you're different than what they think you are, because I know you're more than just a jaeger, and I'm sure others will come to realize that in due time." Morgan looked around her to make sure there wasn't anyone in the surrounding vicinity who may have heard that last part. "Can you at least sleep on that?"

After a brief period of silence, Fie relented. "Ja."

"Good girl." Morgan stood up straight and patted Fie's head. "Now don't go causing Instructor Beatrix any trouble, you hear?"

"You don't need to treat me like a kid," she protested.

"But I'm STILL your elder," Morgan reminded her. "Let me act the part every now and then."

"Two or three years isn't that far apart, but whatever."

Morgan stopped patting Fie's head. "Oh, that's right. I haven't told you all yet, haven't I?"

Fie squinted. "Told us what?"

Grinning, Morgan put a finger to her mouth. "I'm sure a clever girl like yourself can find that out on your own."

"What a pain…" Fie groaned before turning tail and leaving.

"Hmm, I wonder if the headpats were too much…"

As Morgan began contemplating on what to do next, she started hearing the sound of a piano playing from further down the second floor. After making a left and walking past the stairs, she discovered that the music was coming from, as it was to be expected, the music room. Her curiosity piqued, she opened the door as quietly as she could so she wouldn't disturb the piano player and peered her head inside.

The piano was located in the far right corner of the music room and facing towards the door, so getting a visual on the pianist was difficult. However, a head of familiar-looking blonde hair paired with the female Class II uniform was enough for Morgan to deduce that it was one of the girls from the Wind Orchestra.

'So she's a pianist…' Morgan thought. 'And a trained one, from the sounds of it.'

The noise of rain pelting against the windows of the music room would have been a distraction for most, but the girl from Class II seemed to pay no mind to it and maintained a steady tempo. There was no one else in the room either, which meant that she was either practicing or playing for her own personal enjoyment, a feeling that Morgan often saw from Elliot whenever he played his violin after school.

Eventually, Morgan closed the door softly. Then, to her surprise, she let out a long yawn.

"Huh...how come I'm feeling drowsy all of a sudden?"

As she had told Misty earlier, Morgan had recently been staying up later to study for midterms. Although, if Morgan was being completely honest, it was the result of her working habits instead of a conscious decision. Whenever she puts her mind to learning or solving something, Morgan would unconsciously tune out everything until she understood it, and when that happened, the time would fly by like it was nothing. She may not have felt much during those times, but little things build upon each other over time.

Morgan looked to the lounge area. "A nap sounds really good right now…"

She walked over to one of the couches in the lounge area and set her belongings beside her. As she sat down, she let her body sink into the couch's cushions and exhaled deeply. With the piano playing in tandem with the rain, Morgan felt her eyes beginning to close.

"Fie's rubbing off on me…" were the last words she uttered before she drifted off into a deep sleep.

The days following the incident were not kind to her.

Her mother was a kind woman who enjoyed interacting with others, but she particularly maintained a watchful eye on the other children. She would always go out of her way to make sure they were growing well and even used her connections to hold classes and teach them self-defense. In return, she earned their adoration.

Needless to say, when they found out about what happened to her, the blame had to shift to someone. It would be an overstatement to call her a pariah, given who both of her parents were, but aside from several notable exceptions, most children her age didn't bother to interact with her anymore.

In response, she thrust herself into her studies. She started training tirelessly and began running errands for older adults. She felt that if she wasn't doing something that was bettering herself or helping others, she was wasting time.

It was the least she could do to atone for her foolishness.

…

It was raining when she was approached. She had forgotten her raincoat at home and was dressed in very light clothing, so she opted to stay holed up in the library, researching military tactics as she always had. The adults always let her browse to her heart's content.

"Hey there!" the boy greeted with a smile. "Enjoying the rain?"

She looked up from her book. "Just waiting for it to go away. What about you? Aren't you cold?"

"Me?" He chuckled a little bit. "Compared to Ferox's winters, this is nothing."

She blinked. "Oh. Right. I forgot you grew up there before you moved to Ylisse. So? I'm guessing you didn't come here just to say 'hi'."

Another chuckle. "Don't you ever get tired?"

"...What?"

"Tired of studying all the time! You should take a break every now and then."

"I take enough breaks," she refuted. "I do some light reading, play games with my father, run through mock scenarios-"

"But that's boooooring!" the boy rudely interrupted her.

"It's optimal!" she snapped at him. "What's your idea, then?"

"Shhh!" The librarian hushed them with a death glare.

After giving a few silent apologies, she motioned for him to carry on.

"You know how my mother's a dancer, right?"

"Yes. What about it?"

"She plans on holding dance lessons at the theatre. She was wondering if you were interested."

She made a face. "Sorry, but I don't know how to dance."

"Well, neither does Kjelle." He shrugged his shoulders. "But at least she's willing to try."

"I don't know…"

His eyes suddenly lit up, as if he had thought up an idea. "Look at it this way: you want to be a tactician like your father, right?"

"Yes."

"And if I remember, he said one of the most important things a tactician should do is get to know the other members of the army."

"Yes…?"

"Well, what if we thought of this as a meeting between future members of the army?" he reasoned. "As an aspiring tactician, it would be a golden opportunity for you to get to know us. You get to fulfill your duty, we get to dance and have fun. Everyone wins!"

"Uh…" She was loath to admit it, but she couldn't deny the logic in his statement. "Well, when you put it like that…"

"Great! Then it's settled!" He clapped his hands together. "Lessons begin at noon in two days' time! We'll be seeing you then, Morgs!"

"M-Morgs?"

"Yeah!" He smiled gleefully. "You're one of us, so you need to have a nickname!"

"You think I'm...one of you?"

"Why wouldn't you be?" he asked puzzledly. "We all used to play together, didn't we?"

"But I'm…"

"You ought to turn that frown upside down!" he recommended as he did the same. "If you keep sitting here by yourself, you're only going to add to the problem; that's why it's more important than ever to stick with us! We'll help you show others that you're different than what they think you are." He turned around and waved his hand. "Just think about that, okay?"

Before she could stop him, he was already gone. A few moments later, she saw him running away from the library from the window.

"Cherish the memories you make with others," her father had said, "because it's through those experiences that you begin to forge strong ties with each other."

Perhaps the reason she was hesitant to reply was because she had assumed that those ties had already been cut.

"Morgs…"

She heard the sound of rainfall gradually lessening behind her. Eventually, the library was lit with the sun's rays.

"That's the first time I've ever been given a nickname…"

She began to feel a warmth inside as she heard him call her by that name again.

"Morgs…"

"Morgs!"

Morgan lazily opened her eyes to see a pair of red eyes and white bangs staring down at her.

"Gah!" Panicking slightly, Morgan immediately stood up tried to turn around. However, due to the lounge table limiting the amount of space she could maneuver in, she ended up stumbling and would have fallen on her face if a pair of arms didn't catch her.

"Whoa! Didn't mean to scare you like that."

Recognizing the voice, she looked up at her savior. "C-Crow?"

"I guess even you let your guard down sometimes," the second year remarked. Due to the lighting of the building, his silver hair appeared white.

"You just caught me at a bad time." She recomposed herself and regained her footing. Crow let go of her soon after. "And I told you: don't call me Morgs."

"Come on, you know you like it!"

"What time is it, anyway?"

"It's almost seven. What, you got plans for tonight?"

"No, I don't. It's just…wait, did you say it's almost seven?" Morgan slapped her forehead with her palm. "Did I really just pass out for two hours straight?"

Crow put his hands behind his head. "I don't know. Did you?"

"I was being rhetorical," she retorted at him. "Still, I was planning on studying political economics after dinner. At this rate, I'll probably have to push it back…"

"Political economics?" Crow's eyes widened. "Hey, that's perfect!"

"Perfect for what?"

"I was just about to head over to the Student Union building to meet with the gang," he explained. "It just so happens that Towa's best subject is political economics. I'm sure she won't mind sharing some pointers if you ask."

"You think so?" Morgan asked. "I wouldn't want to take time out of her break from student council activities."

"Trust me, you wouldn't want to miss out on this. Plus, Gelica knows a lot about the fine arts thanks to her upbringing, George practically breathes orbal science, and I know a few tricks around the practical things like combat studies. That's, like, four exams right there." He held up four fingers to correlate with the notion. "Not a bad offer, right?"

Indeed, the offer was too tempting for Morgan to pass up. The second year students were probably the best people to ask aside from the other faculty regarding what to expect on midterms, and since Morgan happened to know four of them, it would be a crime not to hear their firsthand experience. So, she followed Crow down the stairs until they reached the main entrance to the building.

"Shoot. Forgot to bring my umbrella…" Crow groaned.

"Afraid of a little rain, Trickster?" Morgan queried.

"Not in the least."

"Well, I know I am. That's why I brought this! " She proudly held up her umbrella.

Crow let out a whistle. "Nice going, Morgs."

"Don't call me Morgs." She opened her umbrella and stepped out into the rain.

"Whoa, whoa!" Crow shouted. "You're not just gonna leave me behind, are you?"

Morgan turned around and looked at him quizzically. "You said you weren't afraid of a little rain, right?"

"That doesn't mean that I like going through it!" he snapped back.

"I'm confident in your practical capabilities~" Just for good measure, she turned around and started walking away slowly.

"Now you're just being mean…" he mumbled just loud enough for her to hear, along with several other choice words.

"Well now, we can't have that tarnishing my reputation, can we?" She started going back the way she came and stopped in front of her upperclassman. "In that case, here."

Crow dumbfoundedly looked at the umbrella that was in her outstretched hand. "Seriously? Now you're just giving it to me?"

"I'm giving you the honor of being my escort to the Student Union," Morgan corrected him. "You're taller than me, so it only makes sense that you should be the one to hold it." She gave him the biggest smile she could muster. "You can either run through the rain or share an umbrella with a beautiful lady. Not a bad offer, right?"

The two of them stood in their respective positions for a moment until Crow sighed. "Personally, I'd rather take my chances with the rain," he admitted before reaching out to take Morgan's umbrella. "But Gelica's gonna grill me if she sees me soaking wet just cause I didn't want to share an umbrella."

"Then we have a deal, then?" Morgan let go of her umbrella. "Just make sure you try and keep me as dry as possible! Like I said, I'm afraid of the rain."

"Cut with the bull," he replied dryly. Nevertheless, he kept the umbrella raised to keep both of them dry as they walked. "And for the record, you're one of the last people I'd think of when I hear the words 'beautiful' and 'lady.'"

"Aww…" Morgan pouted. "And here I thought I could get some sort of reaction out of you."

"Has anyone ever told you that you can be pretty sadistic?"

"Can't say that I've heard that, no."

"Well, like I said: I've got a thing for older women." The older teen shrugged his shoulders. "But who knows? You could change my mind in a few years."

"And you're...how old, exactly?" she asked.

"Nineteen, going on twenty in about a month."

"Huh. That's closer than I thought…" Morgan mumbled to herself.

"What'd you say?"

She shook her head. "Oh, it's nothing."

"So? What about you?" he continued. "Told you my age; want to tell me yours?"

She giggled. "Oh, you know how a fair maiden ought to keep her own secrets~"

Crow made a face. "Ugh. Hearing you talk like that's making me want to barf."

"I'm trying to replicate an older woman's behavior," she explained. "How am I doing?"

"Grading on a hundred-point scale…" the silver-haired teen said. "I'd give you a thirty at best."

"Better than zero, at least."

"What sort of older woman were you trying to act like anyways?"

Morgan thought for a moment. "Instructor Sara on a bad alcohol day?"

Crow simply looked at her in disbelief, with Morgan returning the stare. Then, the two of them burst out laughing.

"Okay, that wasn't my best response." Morgan felt some water splash onto her jacket, but she paid it no mind.

"Tell me about it!" Crow agreed. "She'd kill you if she heard you say that."

Morgan looked around her to make sure a certain violet-haired instructor was nowhere in sight. "In that case, we should pick up the pace before anyone spots us."

Crow bowed in the most mocking way possible. "As you wish, fair maiden."

She snorted in response. "Now you're the one exhibiting barf-worthy behavior."

"Achoo!"

"Bless you, Instructor Valestein."

"Thank you, Principal." Sara rubbed her nose. "I wonder if someone's talking about me…"

"Oh?" Principal Vandyck raised an eyebrow. "I never took you as one to believe in superstitions."

"With all due respect, Principal, my experience has taught me that even superstitions have some truth to them. But back to the matter at hand…" She hastily recomposed herself. "I'll be sure to let Worzel know about his family's offer. Once midterms are over, we'll be able to coordinate with him more flexibly."

"Excellent." The aged principal nodded. "If I may be so bold to ask, how are the other students faring?"

"Last I checked, they were doing a group study session together. Thanks to last month's field study, they've all made significant advancements in their combat links. In due time, they may be able to start advancing to the next level." Sara pursed her lips. "I just hope those are the only things they'll have to worry about this month."

"Yes…" Principal Vandyck furrowed his eyebrows. "To the north, the Calvard Republic has become increasingly vigilant. To the west, tensions between the Reformist and Noble factions have begun to arise once more. With luck, Class VII will only be able to observe the conflicts from afar instead of actively playing a part in solving them."

"If they do, at least they'll be prepared for it," Sara said. "They're two for two when it comes to solving things on their own; I'm willing to bet my mira that they'll be able to do it a third time."

The principal chuckled. "Verily, I hope you're right."

Author's note: And another intermission comes to a close. Things IRL have resulted in me becoming more busy, so prepare for updates to become sparse once again. Hopefully this can hold you over until then.

Not much else to say, so see you all next time! ｖ(⌒ｏ⌒)ｖ