The Girl from the Sea

Chapter 3

A/N: Feel free to leave comments...

Caira rolled over and blinked drearily at the clock. It showed 7 am and someone was knocking on her door. She pulled herself out of bed and went to answer the door.

On the other side of the door stood Briar with a big smile and her face and a mug with something warm in it. "Here! Rosalyn and I made hot cocoa. There are some marshmallows and whipped cream in our mini kitchen if you want to follow me?"

Caira nodded and accepted the mug. She and Briar then walked over to the countertop in the kitchen, their socked feet making almost no noise. Caira sat on a barstool and Briar took the one next to her, while Rosalyn opened cabinets trying to find the marshmallows.

After taking a sip of her cocoa, Caira said, "So today is Orientation Day?"

Without turning around Rosalyn answered, "Yes. We'll head done around 9 to the main lecture Hall. They'll hand out schedules and give you of rooms to visit in addition to your 'classrooms'."

"Are not all classes in classrooms?" Caira asked, noting Rosalyn's air quotes.

Briar shook her head, "No, there are a large variety of teaching spaces. You'll be in for a treat if one of your classes is in ET306. All of the rooms in Eta are something else." Briar set a couple of things in her purse and snagged a water bottle. She handed Caira and Rosalyn each one before walking around and sitting down on the couch.

Caira grabbed an empty notebook from her suitcase and a pen and put them in a small bag with the water bottle. She set it by the door and then walked back to the kitchen. She sat back on a barstool and then asked Rosalyn, "So what kind of food do you guys keep in here?"

Rosalyn sipped her tea and said, "Mostly breakfast food and snacks. Briar and I seldom walk down to the cafeteria for breakfast."

"With the way the food system works, we can just place an order every two weeks and it will be delivered and put away," Briar added on. "If you open any of the cabinets or the fridge, you should be able to get something. The order form will be coming out soon and you can add some of your foods to the list."

Caira nodded in understanding and opened the fridge to see what her options were. She pulled out some cream cheese and some sandwich meat. Rooting through the cabinets for a little bit, she found some bread. Slicing it up, she spread the cheese on it and placed some meat on it. Closing her breakfast sandwich, Caira put it on a plate she found. She walked about around the counter and set the plate in front of her cocoa mug.
Briar and Rosalyn chatted, but Caira only half listened while she enjoyed her breakfast. She listened with her full attention as they started talking about last year's orientation and welcoming ceremony.

"Do you remember Mrs. Tusipa's welcoming speech last year?" Briar laughed a little as she thought back on the memory.

Rosalyn joined in her laughter, "Ya, that's probably one of the reasons they combined they combined the ceremony with orientation. This way we don't have to sit through two similar, long addresses."

"It makes so much more sense, but it also makes the academic year start sooner because we have fewer days of free time."

"That's true." Rosalyn turned to Caira. "I hope for your sake that the ceremony is short and sweet last year."

"Oh stop, Ros. You'll scare her into thinking its a bad thing. Don't worry, Caira. They don't make you stand in front of everyone. They did it for a while, but attendance dropped for a little because new people felt isolated."

Caira nodded again and laughed a little, "That makes senses, being new is hard enough without dealing with being blatantly pointed out."

"Exactly!" Rosalyn stood and set her mug in the sink. "I remember when I was new, and they made me stand in front of the entire school. A class, fine whatever, but the whole school? No, thank you, not again." She shuddered at her memory. "Anyway, we should probably get going so we can get good seats."