20th of Winter, 511 AV. A small tuft of steam wafted from the black surface of his coffee, tickling at the tip of his nose and causing the stoic student to wrinkle his face a bit. Coffee. Delicious. It smells burnt. It makes my head sing. He stared down at the cup for a moment, studying it before lifting it to his lips and taking a sip. He had only recently started to drink it, and it was only because of Lisaelis that he was now addicted. He hated the idea of being addicted to something. He woul dhave to stop drinking it soon. Not this morning, though. Perhaps tomorrow morning, when there wasn't so much work to do and so much to learn. Glancing back up, Matthew stared out the dorm window, peering through a crack in the simple curtains that lined it. It was still horribly early in the morning, Setting his cup on the rim of the window, he shuffled a stack of papers from one arm to both hands, flipping through them quickly as he glanced over their contents. They were personal notes, about a half dozen pages per book that he had based the notes off of. Pausing on one page in particular, he took a moment to reread some of his handwriting, checking for any sort of inconsistancies. The title of that particular book had been Practical Glyphing. ...Glyphs by two different mages can look completely different, but mean the same thing. It is a personal preference, really. We say it is a science, but we draw with our instincts. When we are finished, then the instincts of others can tell the same thing. Glyphs can be a form of Ancient Tongue, though that is saved for another book. For now, merely soak in the shapes, and try to understand their power... It would be helpful to seek Annalisa's counsel on this, then. Several teachers had recommended her when Matthew had asked for advice concerning his project. They all seemed to eager to get the students to work together. Matthew had politely agreed and then contacted the young woman one day after one of her classes. They would meet in her dorm a certain morning. Today was that morning, and Matthew had come prepared. Ink and quill, stack of notes, and mind wide awake. A simple black button-up shirt clung to his well-defined body, black britches holding to his slim hips. His appearance was quite simple, though with quite a bit of attention paid to the small details.There was a faint earthy smell rising from his flesh, the pleasing scent of cologne. There was the gentle odor of mint lingering on his lips. He always remembered to brush his teeth. The morning had been just the same as every morning, though now Matthew was curious as to one thing. Him and Annalisa hadn't set an exact time. Was he here too early? He turned, sliding his back down against the wall, peering at the woman. Was she sleeping? The door had been unlocked, he had assumed she was expecting him. After about two or so bells of waiting though, he was starting to think that perhaps she was actually still sound asleep and that before the crack of dawn hadn't been the equally assumed time. He crossed his legs slowly, letting his notes settle into his lap and reaching up his hand to snag his coffee off the window edge. Perhaps she was just resting her eyes and wasn't aware he had came in. He had been very quiet and had gone straight to the side of the room, settling there to prepare himself for her lesson. He had wanted to be a good student, to make her task as easy as possible. Clearing his throat, completely unaware of the exact appearance of all his actions this morning, Matthew hesitantly spoke in a soft and polite voice. "Excuse me? Annalisa? Is this too early? Are you asleep and I should come back later, perhaps?" |