TEST DRIVE MEME - MARCH

[thewatchers]

TESTDRIVE MEME
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Winter quarter is nearing its conclusion as Finals and Spring Break are quickly approaching. The library is bustling as students frantically prepare, but campus is also buzzing with excitement in anticipation of the school-funded Spring Break trip to Provence.

The administration, however, is not unsympathetic to the stressors of being a student. Comforts such as therapy animals, snack stations, and de-stressing events are being held all over campus to keep students as relaxed as possible and help them prepare for their finals. Daybreak Academy needs their students to succeed, and they spare no expense in helping them do so.

A. STUDY SESSIONS

With the approach of exams, the Hall of Pythia is enforcing 24/7 quiet hours. While it has quiet a few study rooms available, many students will find that the rooms are being booked up at an alarming rate. To account for this, classrooms and media rooms in Theater Lenormand are also being opened up for student use. Many others are spilling over into local restaurants and cafes, coming together as groups to review course material and prepare for their upcoming exams.

During these times, Faculty are expected to take a more hands-on approach as well. Faculty are strongly encouraged to host their own study sessions and rigorously review the exams and what to expect. Faculty are all given first priority for open classrooms and are able to hold after-hours lessons and Q&A sessions as they wish. While it’s not, strictly speaking, mandatory, Faculty can expect it to come up on their annual performance review if they don’t make themselves available to students.

B. THERAPY ANIMALS

Animals have proven to reduce stress, a thing sorely needed during the lead up to exams, and Daybreak Academy has provided three types of therapy animals upon request to aid with making study times much more bearable: The rare Armenian Aralez who is generous with it’s doggy kisses, About six huggable corgi-sized Wooly Bugs with their incredibly soft wool, and a pair of languid Temple lions that don’t mind being used as pillows. Try not to get too distracted from your studies.

C. FASCHING

Also known as Fastnacht Best described as ‘Bavarian Mardi Gras’, Fasching is much like it’s New Orleans and Brazilian counterparts - a celebration of the excess and to live it up until good catholics go give it up for Lent. Least that’s the intent, but like most modern holidays it’s an excuse to cut loose and have fun, and thanks to a sizable German population in Soliel, there is a bit of Fasching in early march with Beer Gardens, Masked Parties, and Live Bands along with decadently rich desserts from both German and French Cuisine. Have fun, but remember there is a curfew.

D. STORYTIME (text)

Hi everyone! This is the Folklore Club! If we could just take a moment of your time…

Daybreak Academy sure is a big school, isn’t it? And the students and staff here come from all over! Here at the Folklore Club, we research myths, legends and stories from all around the world to examine their similarities and differences.

It would really help us out if you told us what your favourite myth or legend is! Don’t be shy - we’d love to see it! Especially if it’s something that we’ve never seen before! And who knows, maybe you’ll meet someone who loves your favourite story too!

[ The results are, naturally, public. ]

Comments

[foolishjustice]

[A) Study Overtime]

[Final exams mean study time. Study time means...time to see who the workaholics are. Such as one Goro Akechi, a teenage Candle from Japan who doesn't seem to have much of a social life at all. He's currently spending the vast bulk of his free time in either the Hall of Pythia or one of the local cafes, with a cup of coffee in one hand and a pencil in the other. Unlike most crammers, however, there's a look of excited interest on his face as he pours over his study materials, eagerly taking notes.

Anyone who makes distracting noise will be addressed with a firm clearing of the throat and a polite request to keep it down in lightly accented English. On the other hand, people who look like they're struggling might find him approaching to offer some help.]

[D) That One Time...]

Have you heard of the time Thor had to dress up as a bride to get his hammer back from the Giant Thrym?

A

[grantmeamiracle]

[It's probably a good thing Akechi's approaching to help, because given how focused this girl is, she's probably not even thinking about asking for it.]

Are you sure? Your own final exams are... [A pause, as she frowns worriedly, then glances at the work sitting in front of her. She does need the help...] But... I won't say no...

[... Given her heavy accent in contrast to his own light accent and the slow, uncertain way she gets the words out, it's probably no surprise at all that what she's struggling with work-wise is English...]

[foolishjustice]

[He notes the Japanese accent, and decides to go ahead and switch languages for the moment.]

It's fine, I'm fairly confident in the material I picked to review today. Besides, it sounds as though some of what you could use a hand with is a bit more practical than just what might turn up on the exams.

[grantmeamiracle]

[Her relieved gratitude for the switch in languages is apparent on her face.]

I didn't really get to learn a lot of English before coming here... So a lot of this is pretty new to me.

A

[yokeye]

[Cafes are not a good choice for studying, as there's always someone who isn't there for the relaxing atmosphere. That someone is Toki. He's occupied a nearby table with his cat Kuroko, talking to her loudly while she laps at a frothy coffee drink he's poured into a saucer. The polite request for lower volume merely gets a glance, as he doesn't speak English. The cat conversation, in terribly accented French, is undeterred.]

No, I don't think I should bother showing up at all~! I missed half the midterms anyway~! Kuroko! Why do you always have to be like that!?

[Kuroko looks up for a moment, before going back to her coffee.]

One! I will take one final exam!

[adjectiveprince]

-1: The wrathful dead are ever ready-

After sundown. In the middle of some other mundane activity, Zagreus suddenly froze, looking alert. Moments later, several blood red portals formed in the ground, spewing forth a small army of glowing shades! Portly shades that moved to fling themselves at Zagreus. Muscular shades that jostled to attack him with clubs. Skinny shades that blast at him with magic.

Zagreus summons a sword and shield made out of what looks like solid shadows as he turns to face them. "Sorry mate, I need to deal with this. Give me a minute?"

-2: As a rule, you don't get a lot of weather in the underworld-

Most of the students at Daybreak Academy come here to learn about the world of the supernatural. Zagreus had come here, among other reasons, to learn about the world of the natural. He currently was lounging out on a couch in the library with a book about The Internet And You. After a long period of silence, Zagreus happened to glance out the window and saw snow falling.

He was familiar with the CONCEPT of snow, but had never been clear about where it came from. This was why he just suddenly broke the silence by blurting out "It falls from the sky!?"

[foolishjustice]

Mine is all textbook, but it's enough that I haven't had trouble communicating. I could give you some tutoring, if you'd like.

[foolishjustice]

[He has to boot up his phone's translator to understand more than snatches of the boy's speech, having only recently started learning French. Fortunately, he recognizes that accent, and speaks again in Japanese.]

Are you having trouble with your own studies?

[grantmeamiracle]

Oh! I'd appreciate it a lot. [She beams.] Thank you!

d

[suddenlybees]

LOL
This sounds like the set-up for a joke~
Alright!!
Let's have it!!!
Hit me with the punchline~!!!

[yokeye]

[That, he understands, and drops French for Japanese as well. He looks away from the cat.]

No~! Well, yes, as in I don't- uh, haven't studied for the final exams, but I wasn't planning on even taking them, so it's fine~! I don't think there's any possible way I can pass anything but Daemon Contracting anyway, so it's a waste of time to show up! Which! Is what I was trying to explain to Kuroko here, but she's stubborn and just look at her! Could you say no to something so cute~!?

[Kuroko is a very non-remarkable generic looking black cat.]

[foolishjustice]

[He sits down across from her, setting his coffee down on the table.]

How's your English reading level?

ii

[suddenlybees]

[ jfc, the outburst is enough to jolt Kano awake- he'd been lounging on one of the couches in the library, textbook over his face and no intentions of studying, only having chosen the library for his nap spot because it's supposed to be quiet. ]

Is the- [ he squints at the book in Zagreus' hands, trying to guess what Zagreus is talking about, but that's not very helpful ]

The what's falling? Huh?

[adjectiveprince]

Snow!

[Obviously.]

[foolishjustice]

[It does strike him as a little strange, but...well, who knows. Maybe the cat is some sort of telepathic familiar, or something.]

That is a difficult face to resist. But, you'd be surprised how much some final exams can count for.

[foolishjustice]

It's an actual myth, but I think the punchline is that Thor is a terrible actor.

He ate an entire ox, and nearly gave himself away.

[suddenlybees]

[ Obviously!!! But also, obviously not, if he'd sounded so shocked by the idea in the first place.

But man, it's still snowing, huh? It seems like winter will never stop... Kano rolls off the couch, saves his spot with the book, and joins Zagreus by the window, squinting out into the sky. ]

It sure is falling from the sky! What, did you used to see otherwise, or what? Never seen snow at all?? Is this your first time seeing snow?

[adjectiveprince]

I just thought it formed on the ground! Like frost that just keeps going.

I grew up somewhere that didn't really get weather.

[suddenlybees]

Heh~
No way, no way, it wasn't eating an entire ox that gave him away, was it?
I know plenty of girls who could do just that!!!

[ He knows one. And her name is Minako. ]

[suddenlybees]

[ That's, uh. It could be reasonable, if you woke up and found a foot of snow covering the ground when it snows overnight, but growing up somewhere without snow and stuff is a bit more realistic. ]

Lucky, lucky~

[ He places both hands on the wall and stretches out his back while he's here. Definitely chillier by the window, though. ]

Where'd you come from? Somewhere down south?

[grantmeamiracle]

[It's clearly a little embarrassing, but--] Um, I was kind of below my grade level...

[... After a moment, she clarifies--] Before I came here, I was supposed to be in my second year of middle school back home. I was home-schooled before that and Daddy only ever used Japanese or Hebrew...

[foolishjustice]

Maybe, but the appetite didn't match that of the woman Thor was impersonating.

It didn't quite give him away, because Loki claimed the 'bride' had been too lovesick to eat for a week.

I'm certain Thor's likely lack of table manners didn't help, either.

[yokeye]

Wait, what!? Like final exams count for more!? I can maybe pass another class!?

[This is news to him. Granted, the best score he recalls ever getting on a final exam was a 37%, so either way, that wouldn't have mattered.]

Do you know if any classes have multiple choice finals!? How much more do they count for!? Hypothetically, say I have currently a 24% in one class and a 40% in another, is there any actual possibility of passing either of those by doing marginally better on the final exams? That's important terminology there, marginally better, because there's absolutely no way I'm getting like a C here! I did get an A on a midterm, apparently, and I am reluctantly believing that because the evidence is there, but it was a complete fluke and will never ever happen again! Also, if I accidentally take the final for a class I'm not technically in, can I transfer that to a class that I am taking~!?

[suddenlybees]

How good for Loki to have his back~
Truly something to be grateful for!
So!
I'm curious!!
Why's this one your favorite?

[adjectiveprince]

Something like that. Focus less on the south and more on the down.