Chapter 2: The Welcome Ceremony

January 7th, X811

Leif von Krone marched, his piercing blue eyes looking straight ahead, boring into the back of the head of the student in front of him as he couldn't help but let an amused smirk appear on his face as his own thoughts ran through his head on how ridiculous this was and how ridiculous everyone was for going along with this military march with its overly loud horns, the over the top amount of soldiers marching ahead of the students and the people… the people blindly cheering for this ridiculous procession were the most ridiculous of all the things there.

"Well, perhaps asides for the ones who organized the march in the first place." Leif thought to himself as he looked up towards the stands where the nobility sat and watched. Though his eyes would narrow as soon as he saw him, the Headmaster, Elias Falkenrath, speaking with Duke Erwin Koenig, Leif's mouth setting into a smirk as his eyes met with the Headmaster's gray eyes. But then he would look away and continue to bore a hole into the head in front of him with his eyes.

Soon though, the military parade would reach the end of its route as they marched up the mountain and through Trovatore City. As they approached the great outer walls that protected the great fortress that was Il Trovatore Magic Academy, the soldiers broke off from the procession, moving to the left and right as the four houses walked in between them all and through the gatehouse, entering into the outer courtyard of the Academy as the House Leaders moved to organize their houses in a line.

As Leif turned his head to look around, he saw that there were easily a few hundred students surrounding him, and that was just Koenig House. He quickly tried to peer through the crowd that surrounded him and saw that it was much the same for Rosenberg House and Morgenstern House which were to his left and right. He couldn't see Mangold House, though he knew them to be on the other side of Rosenberg House and could only assume the crowd of students was just as large as the others. It was then that he heard a voice call out from in front of him.

"Attention fellow students of Koenig House! My name is Gerulf Koenig, heir apparent of House Koenig, and in my final year here at Il Trovatore Magic Academy I have the honor and privilege of leading you as House Leader!" Leif turned his attention forward, looking at Gerulf as he spoke, burning the man's face into his mind as he continued his speech. "We are a House with a long and storied history. One of honor and valor, one of victory and glory, and it is my intention to carry on our traditions and lead us to further glory! For we are the sword of Minstrel which strikes down all her enemies and protects its borders from all that would do her harm!"

The declaration would cause a chorus of applause and a roar of approval from most of the students surrounding Leif. Though he would stay silent, a scowl on his face as he began looking to and fro throughout the crowd surrounding him, picking out several of the more quiet and shy students as well as a few of the more apathetic ones before he heard Gerulf's voice once more, rallying Koenig House to follow him through the grand doors of the Academy as he heard the Morgenstern House Leader begin their own speech to their House.

As Leif and his fellow students of Koenig House entered into the Academy, they were met with the grand central hall of the fortress, a massive hallway lined with great pillars and statues of important figures of the Academy, though several spots were left blank, which Leif could only assume was intentional as to save space for future additions. Soon they would approach the end of the long hallway, passing by all sorts of corridors along the way, not heading into any of them, but rather they would ascend the grand staircase which awaited them at the end, several knights lining the stairs, swords drawn as they greeted the students with a salute as they climbed up the stairs and entered through a large set of doors that awaited them on the next floor, stepping into a large auditorium.

"Follow me to our section, Koenigs!" he heard Gerulf shout loud enough for them all to hear as he led them down into the auditorium, descending down several stairs and leading them to the front left section of seating. "All right Koenigs! Take your seats here! We will be waiting for the rest of the Houses and for the Headmaster to arrive, so feel free to talk amongst yourselves in the meantime and begin to get to know one another!" Gerulf announced as students began talking all around Leif almost immediately as soon as Gerulf stopped talking.

Leif watched the House Leader for a short while, watching as he quickly got swarmed by who he assumed to be old classmates of his that he's known for a while now, though he then heard a voice from right next to him.

"What a place, huh? Makes my hometown, Chor, look small and it's huge," the decidedly female voice said from next him as Leif turned to look at her, seeing a rather unique head of hair, black with a thick stripe of blue down the left side and the hair on the top of her head being tied into a braid while the rest was left to hang freely. He then looked down and was greeted by a pair of large, dark gray eyes that were looking up at him, waiting for a response.

"Chor? That big old town in the northwest? If you think that's small, my hometown could easily fit just in the section of seats we're in. Now that's small." Leif responded, a carefree smile appearing on his face as he looked down at the girl next to him, shaking his back and forth as he did so.

"You must be from the middle of nowhere then, what's your name? I'm Kokoroe Forst," the girl said happily, reaching out one of her hands for Leif to shake, Leif grabbing it firmly in response.

"Leif von Krone. Just your average guy from an average place. Unlike you, I assume from your name," Leif said as his smile turned into a smirk, "What's the heiress of Forst Pharmaceuticals doing in a place like this?"

"Ahahaha… I guess my name gives it away real quick huh?" Kokoroe laughed as she scratched her cheek in embarrassment, "Yep, I'm that Kokoroe from that Forst family. And I'm here cause I wanna be. No shame in that. It's my first year."

"True, true. But hey, I'm a first year too, so we're both in this together it looks like. So hopefully you don't mind the idea of us helping each other out every now and then," Leif suggested, a sly smirk on his face, though he then heard the voice of Gerulf behind him before an answer could be given.

"Ah, do excuse me. I hope I'm not interrupting anything too important," the House Leader said as both Kokoroe and Leif turned to look at the man who had approached them.

"Not at all, your highness," Leif stated as a scowl appeared on his face, practically spitting out the word, 'highness'.

"My apologies, again, for interrupting," Gerulf repeated before turning to look at Kokoroe, "I had hoped to meet you before the orientation began, Miss Forst. As you are aware, I am Gerulf Koenig, and I must say that it is a privilege to finally meet you. I've heard a great deal about you from your father and your grandfather before him. My father seems to hold your family in high regard as well, so I have been very eager to meet you ever since I heard that you would be enrolling here at Il Trovatore."

"I wasn't aware that my father and grandfather talked about me so much to Duke Koenig," Kokoroe admitted, a bit shocked and embarrassed that Gerulf would make it point to find her and meet her so soon. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well. My father, of course, told me a lot about you too, and please, Kokoroe is fine."

"Very well then, Miss Kokoroe," Gerulf responded, a polite smile on his face, "It is of great importance that you and I begin forging friendly relations as heirs of Forst Pharmaceuticals and the Dukedom of Koenig; as your family company does much to support my father and I wish to continue this valuable and precious friendship between our families in the years to come."

"Oh, of course!" Kokoroe agreed as Gerulf then turned to Leif.

"Now then, who are you? If you don't mind me asking," Gerulf asked, his polite smile still on his face, but Leif could see a judging look in the man's eyes, as if he was assessing him.

"Leif von Krone. No one someone like you would have heard of," Leif spat, his scowl still on his face as he did his best to stand as tall as Gerulf, who towered over him by a few inches.

"I see… You're from the peasantry then. Clearly you have been sponsored by someone who saw some vague semblance of worth in you, but they have clearly forgotten to educate you in how to behave around your betters," Gerulf replied, his voice taking on a darker tone as he spoke to Leif. "We'll have to correct that later," he added before turning back to Kokoroe, his voice returning to the polite nature from earlier, "Do be careful of who you associate with, Miss Kokoroe. This may be a prestigious Academy, but sometimes our sponsored students can be rather rough around the edges," he advised before walking off, Kokoroe and Leif watching him march off for a few seconds before Kokoroe broke the silence between them.

"...What an ass!" she exclaimed once the House Leader was out of earshot, "He seemed nice at first, but then he was all business and then he ends with that!? What an asshole!"

"Hey, don't get so worked up," Leif suggested, placing a hand on the short girl's shoulder in an attempt to calm her down, "I'm the one who picked the fight. I can't stand people like him."

"Yeah, I know you picked the fight, you idiot, I was there. But still! What an ass! That polite and friendly nature is just skin-deep! The classist prick!" Kokoroe continued to vent, drawing curious looks from those around them.

"Hey, maybe you should still keep it down. At this rate, word is going to get back to Gerulf that you're saying all of this," Leif pointed out, briefly gesturing his head towards the curious onlookers around them before Kokoroe took a deep breath and began to calm herself down.

"Okay… Okay, I'm calm now. I'm calm. Definitely calm. Not frustrated in the slightest!" the girl stated, trying to convince herself that what she was saying was true. "Hey, earlier you mentioned something about helping each other out every now and then and after putting up with that, I'm totally down for that. Something tells me we're going to need to be able to look after ourselves with that ass in charge."

"Yeah, you can say that again," Leif muttered as he heard the doors to the auditorium open up again, Morgenstern House now pouring in through them, led by their House Leader, their white outfits a stark difference from House Koenig's black ones. As Leif watched the Morgensterns walk down to the front where they were, he suddenly heard Kokoroe call out a name while she put a hand on Leif's shoulder to help her as she jumped up in the air and waved.

"Isabell! Isabell!" she called out, Leif noticing an orange-haired young woman giving her a polite smile and wave as she walked past with the rest of her class, moving into the section of seating to House Koenig's right.

"Friend of yours?" Leif questioned as Kokoroe stopped bouncing up and down.

"That's an understatement if I ever heard one," Kokoroe stated, "We've only been attached at the hip since we were little kids. We've got matching earrings and belly button rings and everything!" she added happily, pointing to her blue, sapphire stud earrings, "Hers are red rubies though."

"She must have some pretty impressive magic to have gotten into Morgenstern House," Leif theorized as he watched the Morgensterns, noticing just how in line the House Leader was keeping them all as opposed to how Gerulf had let his House talk amongst themselves, 'Guess I'm lucky to be in Koenig then,' Leif thought to himself as Kokoroe began talking again.

"I guess, but this one time, Isabell and I..." Kokoroe began, going into a rather long and detailed story about her and her friend, Leif only listening enough to make comments now and then. Soon though, the group he was waiting for would make their entrance, the Rosenberg House. At the head of the crowd was none other than Lissandra von Rosenberg, her long and thick golden blond hair stood out against her bright red military styled uniform and black pants and boots. She led the Rosenbergs to the left, taking the section behind the Koenigs. The woman said a few words to her fellow students and then departed from them as they began to talk amongst themselves.

For a moment, she seemed to be marching up the front of the auditorium, but then she suddenly stopped at Leif and Kokoroe.

"Ah! You must be Kokoroe Forst," she said after stopping suddenly, her intense red eyes looking Kokoroe up and don't. Leif took a brief look at Kokoroe, who very much had a tired and exasperated look on her face, as if to say 'Not again!', but Lissandra seemed to pick up on this as well, "You must have already spoken with Gerulf then, my apologies for troubling you so. But please, allow me to introduce myself, for the sake of politeness. I am Lissandra von Rosenberg and I apologize for whatever rudeness my colleague imparted on you. Gerulf is a beast of a man who thinks only of who and what has value to him and his kin. It is truly unbefitting conduct of a man of his station," she said, taking a deep bow of apology towards Kokoroe.

"Oh no! Not at all! And please don't apologize to me, Leif was the one Gerulf was rude to… Not that he wasn't rude right back," the younger girl explained, trying to wave off the apology as Lissandra turned to look at Leif.

"Leif?" Lissandra repeated as she turned to look at the dark skinned man next to Kokoroe.

"Leif von Krone, your highness. I'm just your average guy, from your more than average place here on sponsorship," Leif explained in introduction, taking a small bow of his own in greeting. Though Lissandra examined him for a short while before saying anything, her eyes lingering on his hair and his own eyes.

"I see. It is a pleasure to meet you Leif," Lissandra eventually said as a small, happy smile appeared on her face, "I'm happy to know there are those among Koenig who won't bow to Gerulf's every whim," she stated happily, though soon an angry sounding voice would cut her off from saying more.

"Lissandra! Why are you speaking to House Koenig? What scheme are you working on this time?" Gerulf demanded to know as he quickly approached them, a loud, audible sigh being heard from Morgenstern House Leader to their right as Gerulf approached the trio.

"Why if it isn't Gerulf! I was just speaking about you actually. I suppose the old saying is still quite true isn't? Speak of the devil, and he shall appear!" Lissandra responded in an overly grandiose and sarcastic tone, dramatically placing her hand on her forehead as if to feign shock, "After all, you truly are the devil with that awful personality of yours."

"You-!" Gerulf began to snap, though the sound of the doors to the auditorium opening as House Mangold arrived cut him off, "We'll finish this later, Lissandra. For now, head back to your own House of Schemers," he ordered before turning around and heading back down to the front.

"While it loathes me to do as he says, I should return to House Rosenberg. The Headmaster will be arriving shortly now that Mangold House is taking their seats," Lissandra explained before taking another polite bow, "Again, it was a pleasure to meet you both," she added before departing from the duo.

"What idiots..." Kokoroe muttered as she sat down in her seat.

"I rather like that Lissandra though," Leif added as he sat down as well, "Of course I'm going to like just about anyone that doesn't get along with Gerulf," he explained as the lights began to dim in the auditorium as various members of faculty poured into the room from the various doors along the outer wall. And soon enough, on the stage at the front, five figures would appear, four of which Leif assumed were the House Sponsors, teachers that acted as guides and leaders for the four Student Houses alongside the House Leaders. But of course, at the center, behind a grand podium was none other than Headmaster Elias Falkenrath.

"Students of Il Trovatore Magic Academy," the Headmaster began, his voice magically amplified by a lachrima crystal in front of him, "It is my honor and privilege to welcome you all here to this Academy's two-hundred sixty-sixth school year. This is an Academy with a long and storied history founded over two and half centuries ago by the Council of Nobles in order to teach and nurture the minds of the next generation of leaders, of knights, of diplomats, of mages and even merchants of Minstrel. Now we take all comers that can prove their worth and skill, who have the potential to become the next great figure in the Noble Republic of Minstrel."

As the Headmaster spoke, Leif took a moment to look around, particularly at House Mangold, though he still didn't have a good view of them being on the opposite side of the room, though quite a few of them, he noted, were quite fidgety and seemed to feel out of place.

"As you are certainly aware," the Headmaster started again, "We expect nothing but your best efforts here at the Academy. Nay! More than your best! We expect each and every one of you to exceed our expectations and allow your potential to soar to even greater heights than you could possibly imagine. You are the elite of your generation, the best of the best, your peers are beneath you in that regard and the proof is your acceptance into Il Trovatore Magic Academy and we here expect you to live up to that. So throughout this next school year, I encourage each and every one of you to pursue new ways to grow in power and in skill and in knowledge. I encourage you to actively seek new avenues of learning, to seek new passions and forge valuable bonds and friendships that will help you to excel both here at the Academy and out in the greater world after graduation. To the future rulers of Minstrel that are here today, I encourage you to do so as well, for only the best deserve to lead this nation and weak rulers make for a weak nation that is bound to crumble and be forgotten by time. Thank you for your time, you are dismissed to be led to your House Dorms."

With that, the lights in the auditorium came back on and the four House Leaders quickly rose to their feet, rallying their houses to follow them out of the auditorium.

A/N: And there we have it! Chapter 2!

There was a bit more detail I wanted to go into regarding the House Leaders of Morgenstern and Mangold, but I haven't gotten them in yet and I decided not to keep you all waiting any longer and made it work I think.

Regarding OC Submissions, they are still open and there's still more than enough spots left open as well. Specifically for Rosenberg students as there are still seven spots for them that haven't been filled or reserved. Also all House Sponsor spots are open asides for Rosenberg House and the Mangold House Leader spot is still up for grabs and I do ask you to message me and run your idea for these particular spots by me first before submitting them.

Also, I don't want anymore first year students unless they are for Rosenberg House, got too many in the rest so far. I'm particularly interested in getting third and fourth year students for others though. I'm also wanting more students that are from noble families, as right now non-nobles outnumber them and that's an oddity in the Academy. I'd also like more male characters as what I've gotten so far has mostly been females with a few guys scattered here and there. Another thing I'd like, is more people that are full-blooded Minstrellans, as I've gotten a lot of people that have spent time living in or were born in other nations so far.

Beyond that though, I wanna say thanks for the reviews, they were nice as usual and I enjoy hearing from you all.

Character Credits:

Leif von Krone – Dreadburner94

Duke Erwin Koenig - Dreadburner94

Gerulf Koenig – Dreadburner94

Kokoroe Forst – MyDearWatson

Isabell Vogel – MyDearWatson

Lissandra von Rosenberg – Dreadburner94

Elias Falkenrath – Dreadburner94

As always, thanks for reading.

Your host,

Dreadburner94.