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“Let’s see…the science buildings were this way, right?”
Cota looked up from her crumpled map, glancing at the tall brick buildings surrounding the southern quad. Supposedly, her introductory photobiology class was around here, and yet every building looked the same. The map helped very little; the numbers were incredibly small, and the text accompanying them even smaller. As much as she did not want to admit to herself that she was lost -- her sister would laugh at her for that -- no one should spend more than an hour trying to find one classroom without any luck.
Great. Just great. Her college life had just begun, and she was as lost as she was on the first day of primary school, asking the daycare counselor if she could go to class thirty minutes before the bell rang.
But she could not be frustrated for too long. Grand Eorzea University was the most prestigious school this side of the Old World, on par with the elite Sharlayan Studium located in the Northern Empty. Only six-thousand applicants out of over twenty-five thousand were accepted; despite having a well-refined application with glowing recommendations, Cota had practically created a hole in the floor of her room as her sister opened both of their results, giving her a smug smirk as she simply pointed at the congratulatory words on both of their applications. To be here was the chance of a lifetime; if she got a little lost along the way, she would never say no to a bit of sightseeing around campus.
And it seemed she was not alone. Several students--from first-years to seniors--were enjoying the fine late summer afternoon. A strapping cocksure junior made conversation with several ladies under a tree, with a freshman standing nearby giving concerned glances at his friend. Two seniors walked side-by-side, discussing the whereabouts of a studious, eccentrically articulate friend. Two juniors were shouting insults at each other across the quad, and Cota could not count on her hands the number of times ‘little sun’ had been said. A sophomore watched from below as his friend -- who Cota recognized as Estinien Varlineau, his sister’s best friend -- ran along the roof of one of the buildings, doing various flips and tricks. She was tempted to wave at him on her behalf, but was startled by the fact that he started to perform more dangerous jumps, standing on his tiptoes and running toward the edge before leaning--wait, is he about to fall off--
“Ack!”
“Oof!”
…Suppose she should have seen that one coming.
“I am so sorry,” Cota stuttered out, immediately reaching for the few books she was carrying, when a hand brushed with her own, halting her movements immediately out of sheer embarrassment. “I-I didn’t mean to bump into you, I just--”
“No worries. The fault is mine.”
In front of her squatted a small Auri woman, long black hair sweeping behind her shoulders and green eyes staring at Cota with curiosity. She was dressed in deep purples, wearing clothing reminiscent of those Cota would find if she went shopping around Tamamizu, considering they were the only colony which traded with Sui-no-Sato. Intriguing, considering the town rarely let its residents leave without severe punishment or reason. The woman leaned in slightly, reaching around where Cota’s hands were frozen against the pavement to scoop up her belongings scattered when they crashed, before standing up and reaching a hand down to her. Cota blinked, still trying to catch up to the present, then slowly took her hand and almost squawked at how fast she was brought to her feet. “O-Oh, thank you…”
“Of course.” She stared at Cota’s books, head tilting slightly. “Introduction to photobiology?”
“Y-Yeah. I was, um,” how embarrassing, “trying to find where it was. Y’know, before classes start next week. I don’t want to be late because I don’t know where I’m going.” Cota was fully expecting her to laugh at her mistakes -- after all, that primary school teacher had done the same thing before sending her back to where the other children sat patiently with strange looks on their faces -- but instead she simply smiled. That was…relatively new. And cute.
“That’s a smart idea. I wish some of my friends had done the same when they first started here.” She hummed slightly, glancing now at the crumpled map that Cota held against the cover of her book. “Well, if you’re looking for the science buildings, you’re heading in the right direction.” The girl pointed a finger -- dark purple polish , Cota noted -- toward a cluster of mortar brick buildings along the path she had been taking, just past another freshman gasping in awe at the sights while her shorter father argued with her about being lost yet again . “Just continue down the main path past the southern quad, then make a left. You’ll see a large sign saying Frondale Center for the Sciences. If you’re looking for the classroom, you’ll want to take the second hallway on the left, followed by the third door on the left.” Wow, she knows quite a lot, even if it’s just directions.
“Ah, thank you so much! I appreciate the help.” The girl turned back to her, nodding.
“It’s a big campus, but you’ll have the directions down in no time at all, especially after the first few weeks. And most students here are friendly; if you ask them a question, they’ll point you in the right direction.” The girl glanced down at her tomephone briefly, eyes widening before she shut it off and slipped it into a pocket. “Ah, I must get going. Someone I know has thrown out their back in the gymnasium and I must run to the health services to check them in.” Based on the tone of her voice, again was left unspoken. “Best of luck finding your other classes.” She started to jog forward, but stopped only two seconds away, a warm smile on her face as she turned briefly back to Cota. “And welcome to Grand Eorzea University, friend.”
As the girl jogged off, disappearing behind a corner, Cota immediately reached a hand to her face, trailing the lines where skin met scale, feeling a slight heat simmering there, and immediately shook her head. No way. Not again. This could not happen again .
…It was happening again.
Cota abandoned any hope of finding the rest of her classes and dashed across campus. There was only one person she could go to in desperate times like these; a master of the art, one could say. And she was the only person Cota would trust with this kind of delicate situation.
“You will not believe what happened, Cirina.” Said student let the bubblegum she was chewing inflate slowly, letting the sentence sink in for several seconds, then let it pop loudly.
“Do I get three guesses? First two don’t count?” Cota pouted in the doorway before walking into their shared dorm room in the Reunion building.
“I’m not that predictable!”
“North Yanxia High School would say otherwise. You do realize there was a reason why people put you on the ballot for Nhaama, right? Or should I get the photo evidence on my phone of every. Single. Time. That you swooned for someone quietly?” On second thought, this was a terrible idea and I should file a roommate complaint immediately. Cota rolled her eyes, setting her books down on the oak wooden desks before promptly letting herself fall onto her bed. A mistake, she realized, as the mattresses here were as stiff as stone compared to the steppe surge beds she had grown up with. “Who’d you run into?”
“A pretty girl outside the science buildings,” came Cota’s muffled voice. She flipped herself around, eyes locked on the tiled ceiling. “I accidentally bumped into her while mapping out my classes and she helped me find my way. It was embarrassing…”
“And you enjoyed every second of it.” Another pop. Cota sat up.
“I didn’t enjoy almost breaking someone’s nose, nor looking like a ruby tomato for several minutes in front of another person. But she was really nice, yes.”
“And did you get her name?” Cota frowned for a moment, then gasped, then flopped back down on the bed in a span of a few seconds, letting out a frustrated groan and shoving her head toward her pillows, trying to block out the inevitable mockery. It did not work. Cirina barked out a laugh, coughing slightly as she tried to avoid choking on her gum. “Seriously?! You didn’t get her name?”
“I was embarrassed, okay?! How was I supposed to think about asking for her name!”
“Because it’s common courtesy, perhaps? Because every time we met someone new in high school, you would immediately go, ‘Hello! I’m Cota Himaa! Nice to meet you,’ and bow like we were in front of the tribe leader or something?” Cirina let out another laugh, before finally settling down, wiping a tear or two from the corner of her eyes. “Man, you must have it bad. Look, it’s a small star. If you’re this infatuated by her already,” Cota growled, but it went ignored, “ you’ll definitely run into her again.”
“Not funny.”
“I wasn’t even trying to provoke you that time. Ha!” Cirina leaned back on her own bed, chewing through her gum a bit louder and reaching for one of the several books on business management both of them were forced to buy for their introductory course. “I’m serious, though. Give it some time. You’ll definitely see her around. It’s only the start of our college experience here, and there’s so many people here to meet. There’s plenty of classes, several awkward run-ins in the crowded cafeteria, and lots of parties to mingle in.” Cota sighed again, lifting herself from the bed. The last of her embarrassment was fading from her cheeks, and though she regretted every mistake she made in those moments, knowing that there was at least four years to meet the girl again was somewhat comforting.
“You’re right. Thanks, sis.” Cirina hummed in silent understanding, flipping a page in her book. Even if it took several more embarrassing moments, this was why she could only trust her sister with this information. Because despite their differences, they always had each other’s backs, and would support the other. And if she was granted a second chance at meeting the pretty girl, her sister would remind her that the opportunities were plentiful and they had time on their side. These next few years will be some of the most interesting, yet perhaps the most wonderful. I must use every chance I get to experience all I can.
“Of course, if you want me to speed things along, I can always get Estinien to ask Aymeric to ask around. That man’s got sources abound despite being a sophomore.”
Never mind.
“ Never ask Estinien to do anything .”
“Good morning, little sprouts!” came a chipper voice from the front of the lecture hall, despite it being only nine in the morning with several students trying to sneak in a brief nap. She was short in stature, using a stool to reach the chalkboard where she wrote out her name in fancy cursive letters. “I am Professor Fufucha Fucha, born and raised in Gridania, so mind my accent. I’ve worked in the photobiology department for eighteen years now, and have aged finely like our famous oak trees if I say so myself!” That elicited a small laugh from the person sitting behind Cota in her first class, before they winced as the person next to them shoved a hard elbow in their ribs. As the professor began to speak about how she had got fascinated by the subject since she was the size of a wee popoto, Cota heard yet another shove and a wince.
“What! It was funny!”
“I’ve heard better jokes from a drunken cactuar taking a piss in Ishgard. Only you would find that comment funny, Sanson the Stiff.” Cota felt movement as Sanson adjusted himself to directly face his friend, though she did not bother to turn around and watch. She was not about to get in trouble on her first day of class because of some moronic distraction. Liven up a bit, Sis, Cirina would say, making jokes about bringing out the popcorn right before some big dramatic moment that would throw everything into disarray around them. Maybe when it was not the second most important day of their college careers she would indulge herself. First impressions were everything, after all.
Well, second impressions if they were the pretty girl from a week ago.
“Because it was! And what did I say about calling me Stiff, Guydelot?”
“Don’t you remember? We were in your bed and you whispered so lovingly in my ear with that sweet voice of yours that--”
“That was because you challenged me to a drinking contest, and you knew there was no way I could win against you and your iron liver! You just wanted to get me to say that so you could use it against me!”
“You agreed to it. Kinda brought that on yourself, Stiff. And you were so determined too, taking drinking advice from Nourval of all people...”
“Urgh. The moment this class is over, I’ll show you stiff--”
“Ooh, I’m looking forward to it already~”
“Are you two done barking up each other’s trees?” came a third, gentle voice. Sanson and Guydelot gawked toward the front of the room, arguments on the tips of their tongues, and Cota glanced toward the doorway. Oh no.
Fufucha turned around from where she was currently drawing the basic plant structure on the board, a smile on her face. “Ah, there you are! I got your email this morning and figured you would not make it! How is Gosetsu, by the way?”
“Doing better, thank you. We managed to contact the health offices to have his back pain examined, and he should be able to make his meeting with you later.” The again between them was silent. Fufucha gave her a sympathetic smile before she turned back to the class.
“I’d like to introduce you all to Yugiri Mistwalker. She will be our TA during this semester, so if you ever have any questions regarding course material, exam prep, or need someone to talk about me behind my back, she’s always here for you! Strong as roots, this one!” Cota saw Yugiri scan around the classroom, eyes squinting at Sanson and Guydelot quickly before her gaze landed on Cota. Her expression softened, a small smile on her lips, before she walked to the opposite side of the room, taking a seat near the professor, pulling out a small tablet before watching Fufucha turn back to the board. “Now then, let’s continue with our brief review. Shout it out for me: the heart of the plant is…”
“...Fuck,” was Cota’s whispered answer, eyes still focused on Yugiri.
Someone behind her -- could have been Sanson, could have been Guydelot -- snorted loudly.
This was going to be a long semester.