Chapter 233 Meet and Greet

Van met up with Luna along the way to their room. Nervously he paused right outside the door, wondering if it would be rude to barge in while Cerina might be in the middle of some sort of negotiation or another. He didn’t have to wonder for long because the door almost slammed right into him and Tabitha stormed out of the room with as much dignity as she could muster. Leaving him and the others confused as to what had transpired between her and Cerina while they were away.

Taking a quick peek in, he saw that Cerina and all the other roommates were also in the room. Upon noticing him, Cerina motioned him to come inside. With a look at his compatriots, they silently agreed to come in, all except Seral.

“Sorry, I don’t think It’s my place at the moment to introduce myself. Maybe once you get the whole dorm issue settled first. I hope you don’t mind.”

Van shook his head, understanding a little where Seral was coming from. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll tell you if anything important happens between us that you should know next time we meet. After this, let's go out and tour the school.”

Seral gave a thankful look. “When you're done, give me a call on the vespera bangle. I’ll be waiting nearby.” And with that, Seral left for his room.

Van then shared a quick look with Kira and Luna, both of who seemed as nervous as he was. Taking a deep breath, he walked in as confidently as possible, until he stood beside Cerina and she introduced him to their guests and maybe new roomies.

“These were the ones that I was just about to tell you about.” Cerina began. “This here is Van, the resident male of this dorm, and his wife Luna. They were both accepted into the prestigious academy at the same time. And not wanting to part from each other, had things arranged to allow them to stay together while they attend this school. Van is from House Vransolis and Luna is from House Moonshadow respectively. Though there are a few caveats about that we can get into later.”

“To their left is Kira from House Bloodmoon. Her family and house have defended the east from the incursions of the wastes for a long time and is the cousin of Merody. If there are any more questions you have of the wastes, you probably best ask her or Merody for answers.” Cerina then finished introducing them and waited for a pause, giving Van and the others a chance to speak and say something.

“Hello, it’s nice to meet you,” Van said with a small nod of his head, a little frozen in place and unsure of if he should bow or not.

“S-same here,” Luna said with a quick but nervous curtsy.

“As Cerina said, if there are any questions you have about the wastes, don’t be afraid to ask,” Kira said kindly and diplomatically, giving her own curtsy.

Van took this time of introducing themselves to take a better look at their guests since he didn’t have much of a chance with everything that was happening during their first encounter. While he was checking them out, the Fandorian princess introduced herself and her compatriots one by one, beginning with putting a hand to her chest.

“Hello, my name is Avalyn, pronounced Ava-Lyn or Ava-Lin, whichever you prefer. I am the heir to not only my home country of Fandor, but to Kittar as well. I hope we can become friends and create a lasting bond that will test time itself.” She smiled sweetly, her light blue eyes shimmering with bright emerald green undertones. Her hand flaunting her revealing chest more than pointing to herself. Emphasizing her bust and the way her silken garments fell down to the floor, hugging her body.

“And this here is my close friend Miu Tiikari, or as she likes to be known, Astrid. She’s from Troa-”

“HI! Names Astrid!” Astrid interrupted excitedly. She had been waiting for a while, a mischievous glint in her eyes and a fun-loving smirk on her rosy lips. Her energy had reached its max and now burst out of her in a frantic wave of jittery excitement, her tail dancing behind her, ringing a soft chime from the dangling silver bell tied at its end.

She leaned forward, hand outstretched. “So nice to meet you! Hope we can be friends!” Her bright golden tiger-like eyes gazing with excitement into Van’s own.

“Uh… nice to meet you.” was all he could say, leaning forward and shaking her offered hand. Noticing how lightly tan she was, with golden stripes covering her body and white silken sashes the only thing covering her bare chest, and white underwear-like clothing covering her bottom half. Her clothing somewhat reminded him of when Katalyna wore her belly dancer-like outfit but more luxurious.

The second Van held her hand, Astrid pulled him in closer and gave him a few quick sniffs, making him turn pale. He was surprised by the hidden strength she had in such a petite body, and was weirded out by her sniffing him, so close that her long white glossy hair tickled him.

“Hmhmhm…” She giggled all of a sudden. “You smell like cat.” She said, looking into his eyes now. “And in more ways than one…” Her eyes now roving down his body.

But to Van’s surprise, it didn’t stop at his crotch and continued downward until she was looking at his shadow. He felt more than heard a low growl come from Azra.

Astrid’s smile widened.

“Astrid! What are you doing!” Avalyn paled a little, she also knew her friend to be a bit eccentric, but this was taking it too far! She pulled her friend back like one would do a cat, holding her friend from the armpits and began to profusely apologize to Van.

“I am so sorry! She’s normally better behaved than this!” Avalyn said, looking horrified that such a thing happened while Astrid looked like she held no remorse and would do it again if she could, with a wide-eyed cuteness that only cats could pull off and a fun-loving smile on her face.

“Damn cat needs a leash…” One of Avalyn’s companions said. The one that looked like the slayer.

After that little fiasco that not only surprised Van but everyone else as well. Avalyn began once more with her introductions.

“So… Er… As I was saying. Astrid is from Troa. But not just any resident from Troa, she actually is a minor godling with a… very small… cult following… and as you can see, for good reason…” Avalyn said, her words phrased in such a way as to get back at Astrid for the stunt she pulled.

“Meow, that’s hurtful Ava…” Astrid said, looking up at her friend with wide puppy eyes from where she was being held. Though it was still clear she felt no remorse for her actions.

Avalyn didn’t fall for it and continued to hold her friend in her clutches.

“After her is my other friend, Hilda.” Motioning with her head towards the blue-haired and red-eyed woman on her right. The one wearing form-fitting leather armor with at least a dozen daggers strapped down to her lithe and athletic body looked more like a rogue than a slayer.

“She’s a slayer and my bodyguard. I’ve known her ever since I was little. She is a trusted ally and confidant. With many years of training and actual battle experience. I hope you all can get along with her. Because I'm sure that if you knew her like I did, you’d all realize how much of an amazing and kind person she is.” Avalyn said with a genuine smile on her face and high confidence in the description of her friend.

Which only served to make Hilda blush a little while she was trying to act grumpy and stoic with her arms around her chest. She didn’t say anything and kept quiet, trying to regain her air of mystery as well as not wanting to introduce herself to a bunch of vampires.

“And finally but not least, we have Lucia,” Avalyn said, introducing the last member of her group.

“Lucia is from the order of Lucius, or as some might call it, the order of light.” Avalyn began to explain. “While I have only known her for a few years, she is a trustworthy ally that has helped me overcome great trials on my quest for heirship. Where I had to prove myself worthy of being the royal heir of not just Fandor but Kittar as well. Without her help and advice, I may not be here to see you all today.”

Lucia gave a small bow of her head but remained quiet. Not wanting to draw any more attention to herself. In fact, it was hard to even know she was there, her presence was so light, to the point that Van almost forgot that she was there.

It also seemed, oddly enough, that out of everyone introduced so far. Cerina and the others decidedly didn’t like Lucia more than the actual Vampire slayer in their midst. Though they tried to hide it. At least… that was what Van was able to pick up.

Now that Avalyn had finished her introductions, Cerina gently clapped her hands to get everyone's attention, a polite smile on her face that hardly ever wavered since the princess began her own introductions. Only twitching when Astrid pulled that stunt of hers.

“Now that we have all introduced each other, let’s help our new roommates settle in. After that, we can show them around the dorm area. I have also taken the liberty to sign all of us up for a school tour later today, for anyone that wishes to take a look around.” She looked towards Avalyn. “I can also sign you and your friends up as well if you wish. It would be a nice way for our group to bond. What do you say?”

Avalyn gave her own polite smile back. “I would love to come with you.”

The two then began to have a quick pleasant chat with each other. Cerina then showed them the available beds around them and the screens they could use for some semblance of privacy.

“Is this seriously all they are giving us?” Hilda complained. “There is a male here…”

Cerina began to explain the reasons. “Out here, once you're out in the wastes. Anything can happen, so you must fight together, eat together, bath together. This is to help build strong bonds between students or at least get them used to the nitty gritty of wasteland life. The school also doesn’t really care what kind of social dynamic they create by throwing all of us in together like this. In their eyes, the ones that are worthy will rise to the top. Whether that be male or female, doesn’t matter to them. What matters is survival.”

Hilda grunted. “Sounds like slayer training all over again…”

“If you don’t like it, you can earn merit points to be allowed to have a bit more privacy. Merit points can be exchanged for lessons, books, and better beds and screens, as well as the permission of changing the color or style of your uniform. Though it should be mentioned, merit points mostly revolve around permissions, allowing access to do things. While contribution points allow you to purchase things from the school store without needing to spend your own money.”

“You can earn merit points by doing school-related tasks, such as getting good grades, entering mini-class tournaments, providing school services and a bunch of other things. While contribution points are earned by working for the school in some capacity or selling dangerous monster parts that you achieved through your own merit by hunting them in the wastes. There are a bunch of things you can do to make your stay here that much more worthwhile and comfortable. If you have the will to make it so.”

While Cerina talked, Van excused himself and decided to wait outside until they changed and were ready.

As he waited outside, he was surprised to find Seral there. Using this time, he explained everything that had happened so far and asked his friend if he would like to come with them on the tour.

“Are you sure that would be okay? I don’t have anything to do with your dorm.” Seral said unsure.

“I’m sure it would be okay. If anything Cerina would be more than happy if you came, and maybe a few other students as well. I have an idea that she would like it if more students came to her for things then Tabitha…” Van replied.

Seral could only nod that as it made sense. “That’s true, I’ll tell Samira, be right back.” And with that he left and entered the dorm next door.

Saying goodbye to his friend, Van waited… And waited… And waited… About half an hour passed by and he was beginning to wonder what was taking them so long. Curiosity getting the better of him, he turned around and gave a light knock on the door. When he heard no reply he decided to take a peak in to see what the hold up was.

Opening the door, he saw that Avalyn and her friends were all changed into their school uniforms. It was clear by the way they held themselves that they were a bit uncomfortable, but they looked cute. Lucia, though, seemed to be still carrying her book and had an appropriate matching hood that she could wear, allowing her to still cover her face, though a few strands of blue hair still peaked out.

It didn’t take long for Van to figure out what was going on. Somehow Luna had found herself the center of attention, with Avalyn gently cupping her ears on both sides of her head.

“Oh my… Luna was it? You have such beautiful ears… do you perhaps-” Avalyn stopped herself as if already realizing she shouldn’t say anymore with the way Luna was giving her a fearful look. “-Perhaps moisturize?” She instead said, letting go of Luna’s ears, realizing how rude she was being.

Unbeknownst to Van, while he was away, Avalyn had been asking a few questions about everyone around her. Specifically about Luna and why she decided to bring a male, her husband, to such a dangerous school. During her questioning, Avalyn couldn’t help but notice how distinct Luna’s ears were and was quite smitten with them.

“Uh, no… I guess… I’m just lucky that my ears are like that.” Luna replied lamely.

Before the awkward situation could get any more awkward, Van walked up to save his wife the best he could. Once everybody noticed that he was back in the room, he headed towards Cerina as if the whole reason why he entered was to see her.

“Sorry to bother you Cerina, but it’s been a while and Seral wanted to know if it was okay that he and a few of his roommates could come with us on the tour. I said it would be fine but wanted to make sure with you just in case.” Van said.

Cerina seemed to brighten up. “Of course, he and his roommates could come!” She said happily, then turned to Avalyn. “Do you mind if we head out now? Or are there still a few things you want to pack up before we leave?”

Despite his efforts, Van felt like Cerina picked up on his hidden intentions, but kept her expression so well-schooled that he couldn’t be one hundred percent sure.

Avalyn looked towards her friends, giving them a quick once over and then at the stuff they had put away on their beds before answering Cerina. “No, I think we're good to go whenever you are. Right girls?”

Astrid, Hilda, and Lucia all gave one form or another of agreement. Especially Astrid who looked ready to go and was barely able to contain herself.

Cerina smiled. “Then please follow me, our tour guide should be here any minute now. And I can’t wait to show you around the school and everything that we have to offer you. I’m sure by the time you get back home, you will have a whole new appreciation for vampire culture and everything it can offer.” Giving a prideful look.

“I’m sure I'll be amazed,” Avalyn said, giving a diplomatic smile in return.

After that, the group began to leave. Van stayed behind a little until he was the last inside the dorm, and made sure to hold her hand before heading out with everyone else. Once he did so, Luna shed a huge sigh of relief, and gave him a weak but loving smile, a silent thanks in her eyes and expression. He in turn gave her hand a squeeze and led the way, following behind everyone else.

Not soon after, they were out and Cerina was talking with Seral and a few other of his roommates. The guide showed up and Cerina explained the slight change of plans. The guide just nodded and counted them all and chatted with her a bit before Cerina gave the thumbs up to everyone.

Soon they were off. And Van couldn’t help look forward to what kind of tour this would be.