[Flashback: Squire Dorms] Just Us Girls (Aurelia)

[Jaelyn Baroth]

"In this suite," Jaelyn said with a small nod in response to Aurelia's alarmed response to the ratio of boys to girls, "There are other girl Squires, but they are in other suites," she gave a soft smile to the new Squire, in hopes of easing her concern, "Most of the boys are nice and respectable at least. They just get loud sometimes."

Aurelia's determination and palm punching were not lost on Jaelyn, and they gave Jaelyn a moment of pause before she answered her roommate's question, "Well, some of them can be mean, but the Knights and Chaperons do their best to discourage such behavior," she gave her best reassuring smile to the younger girl, "If you have problems, you should be able to talk to one of the Chaperons about it, since fighting or sparring is forbidden in the dormitories."

Leading the way further down the hallway Jaelyn eventually brought them to the dinning hall. The large room was full of Squires moving about, those who had just finished eating leaving as those coming to eat arrived. The various tables about the room seemed to be constantly empty and filling. Gesturing towards a line of nearby Squires Jaelyn asked, "Shall we get our food? It seems we arrived just in time."

[Aurelia Whitethorn]

Jaelyn’s reassurance assuaged Aurelia’s concerns more than the older squire realized, which the blonde-haired girl was enormously grateful for. Her poor experiences as a page had tempered her pessimism around young boys. She had grown suspicious around them, oftentimes attributing their every action to an ulterior motive. Of course, she had met plenty of teenage men who had not conformed to her preconceived notions of the male species, but they tended to be few and far between.

“My mother always said that boys will be boys,” she supposed, forcing a half-smile to indicate that she trusted Jaelyn’s assessment, even if she remained somewhat skeptical. Aurelia could deal with loudness. The other pages who had served her Sponsor Knight along with her had been more boisterous than a bull raging through a china shop. It was the cruel jibes that concerned her the most.

Nodding as Jaelyn explained that the Chaperons and the Knights were charged with maintaining order among the squires, Aurelia breathed a sigh of relief. Unlike her years as a page, which had been relatively chaotic because there had been less oversight, it appeared that squires did not encounter the same problems. “I’m glad to hear that,” she honestly said. If truth be told, Aurelia probably would not have tattled upon any of the other squires – that simply wasn’t her way. However, she would not have had a second thought about giving any of the mean ones a taste of her mind.

Aurelia stayed close to Jaelyn as they entered the dining hall, which was bustling with activity by the time they arrived. There were far more squires than she imagined there would be, most of them at least a few years her senior. Straightening her shoulders and forcing the intimidation from her countenance, she walked beside Jaelyn and moved towards the food line.

“It looks that way,” she quietly agreed, her blue eyes roaming from one side of the room to the other to gauge its occupants. “There are so many people in here. Do we just…sit anywhere?” she curiously asked, remaining conscious of the queue’s progress as they waited. She stood briefly on the tips of her toes to peer at the front of the line, wondering if they ever ran out of food.

[Jaelyn Baroth]

Jaelyn gave a small nod at Aurelia's question, "Yes, we can sit most anywhere. Most everyone likes to sit with friends or those familiar, but more often than not you end up just sitting where you can find a spot," she then gave a soft smile to the girl next to her, "We should be able to find somewhere the two of us can fit in at least."

She could remember how it had felt, being new and not knowing anyone, and even if she didn't want to bring it up she knew it had made her nervous and uncomfortable. Hopefully she could help Aurelia from feeling the same way.

Soon enough the line had moved along and the two girls received their food. Nothing fancy, a stew with some bread and cheese, but certainly a decent and filling meal. Taking a moment to look about the room Jaelyn spotted a nearby half full table, and indicated it with a nod of her head, "Over there looks good, Aurelia."

Carefully Jaelyn started to make her way through the crowd and towards the table, occasionally looking over her shoulder to make sure her new roommate was making it along fine as well.

[Aurelia Whitethorn]

Aurelia nodded slowly. Her gaze quickly swept around the room, efficiently noting the various cliques that had already begun to congregate together. The young girl had never belonged to a specific faction of her own. Her friends had been few and far between, mostly because she had left her home at the Mithryn Outpost at an early age to commence her page training in Syliras, which had done everything except provide her with new friends. She hoped that that would change though. A sidelong glance at the kindhearted Jaelyn suggested that her luck was finally about to teeter in her favor, but Aurelia would not cross her fingers and dare to hope, not when life had shown her thus far that hope often ended in disappointment.

The young squire stared down at her meal as it was delivered to her. Her stomach rumbled gleefully at the sight, and she could feel her mouth beginning to water intensely. Having waited all day to eat, Aurelia would have been grateful for just about anything to fill her stomach with, and the stew, bread, and cheese certainly fit the description. Despite her relatively high-maintenance appearance, though, she was not a picky eater. Growing up on a farm had exposed her to a wide variety of meals, and being finicky usually resulted in going to bed with an empty stomach.

As Jaelyn identified a half-empty table for them to occupy, Aurelia hurriedly followed after her. There was something about being in the older squire’s presence that elicited a hint of pride in the young girl. Perhaps it was the way that the other squires allowed Jaelyn to pass by them without heckling her, or maybe it was the subtle confidence that the dark-haired girl radiated when she walked. Whatever it was, Aurelia immediately realized that she had been enormously lucky in receiving Jaelyn as her roommate. She was in good company.

When they arrived at the vacant benches, Aurelia ensconced across from her one and only companion and offered an excited smile the older squire’s way. “This looks delicious,” she said, glancing down at the steaming meal before her. She closed her eyes and inhaled the fumes deeply, shuddering slightly as they teased her appetite. Aurelia could not remember the last time that she had eaten without fear of being the target of a mean prank, but she had a hopeful suspicion that she had nothing to worry about anymore. The people here seemed more mature, more focused.

“So what does a normal day here usually look like?” she curiously asked, wondering if everyone had the same regimented schedule or if that only applied to the meal times.

[Jaelyn Baroth]

Sliding onto the bench and putting her food down Jaelyn smiled and nodded at Aurelia's comment, "Yes, the cooks work hard to provide good food," gazing down at her own food Jaelyn bowed her head and closed her eyes, her lips moving softly as she offered a prayer to Tyveth.

After she was done with the short prayer she turned her gaze back up to her roommate with a soft smile, "I imagine the day here is usually very quiet. A Squire's training is handled by their Patron Knight, and though they have different ways of going about it I cannot imagine there are many Squires here in the dormitories during the day except those who are injured or unwell."

Taking a spoonful of stew Jaelyn sipped on the hot liquid, and then gave a soft sigh of contentment. She knew some Squires complained of the food being bland and repetitive, but Jaelyn didn't feel the need to complain. She was happy with simple food that was filling and strengthening, and that was what the dormitories provided.

After a few spoonfuls she paused, and offered a small smile to Aurelia, "Might I ask why you want to become a Knight?" it was a question new Squires were asked a lot, and so was probably safe ground.

Jaelyn was finding that she was enjoying Aurelia's company, and smiled softly at the younger Squire as she waited for a response. Maybe the two of them could become friends, and work hard together to become great Knights. It would be nice to have someone like that, especially as a roommate.