Winning votes said:
[X] Ten circles.
[X] Catch up to the girl.
"Wait!" You say, a little louder than you intended. It gets her attention back at least. She turns to face you, saying nothing but giving you a bemused look that seems to tell you to just do what she said.
Yeah, she definitely would make an excellent magus one day.
"Are you sure you don't need any help with those? I was going over to talk to professor El-Melloi anyway." You tell her.
She shrugs, "Sure, but be sure to add 'the Second' after his name. He hates it when people don't." She walks over to you and drops the stack in your hands. They nearly slip, not because they're too heavy but because you're caught off guard by how sudden she let's go. She places her hands in the pockets of her sweat shirt and begins on her way again, this time with you following behind.
"So, uh," you begin, trying to make small talk, "calling me something so informal like 'Matt' when I don't even know you was a bit rude."
"Oh? Are you one of those mages who only answers to one or all of your numerous titles?" She says without turning to face you.
"Well no, I don't really mind even though I am your superior around here. Though I'd prefer to at least know your name." You answer to the orange locks on the back of her head, "also nobody calls me 'Matt.'"
She's silent for a few seconds. You can only guess she's weighing whether or not you're worth giving her name to. You, a magus ten years her senior, have to have your worth weighed by her.
Apparently deciding it doesn't matter, she says "Call me Seren."
"It's nice to meet you Seren." It really isn't, but you aren't going to be impolite. That is where your short conversation ends. The both of you enter the simple room to see a man with long-green hair, clearly lord El-Melloi, standing by a table with a boy seated in front of it. He seems so busy massaging his forehead that he doesn't even acknowledge you as you enter. Around him are several ducks that you can only wonder the reason for being present.
"Just set the sheets on the table." The girl tells you as she takes a seat next to the boy.
After a few seconds of pure silence and you standing there having no idea what to do, the professor speaks, "you know what, I don't care anymore. I asked you to bring a familiar to me and you bring seventeen waterfowl that serve as such. Good work Torrin. I need a cig."
The boy, Torrin, gives a beaming smile to his professor as he walks around you and out of the room. He then turns to his friend "Seren! I did it!"
"Good job Gareth, you now have seventeen ducks at your beck and call." Seren responds with mock-enthusiasm. That's as much as you catch as you turn and attempt to talk to the professor.
"Excuse me!" You say, again louder than you intended, "I was hoping to ask you something."
"Shoot." He tells you with a wave of his hand.
"I'm uh, I'm going to be in the next false Holy Grail War, the one going on in Astoria." You explain as you catch up to him, "I heard you survived the fourth real war almost twenty-five years ago and was hoping for some advice."
"Astoria... I have no idea where that is. As for the war itself, I got nothing for you, best I can say is 'don't die.'" He answers.
"E-excuse me?" You're shocked at how little he had to say.
"Really, I did hardly anything back there. I summoned a powerful servant and was by his side as he did what he thought best in the war. I'd add something like 'I am who I am today thanks to him' but that wouldn't help you. It all depends on what you have, what your opponents have, and everyone acts with what they got." He turns to you, no emotion showing on his face, "any other questions?"
"No sir," you say, dissapointed at learning so little. As you turn around you hear him give you a "good luck" before you're both on your separate ways.
On your way to Mr. Belfaban's office, you happen to see something out of the corner of your eye as you turn. Knowing you saw it it, the duck that must have been following you suddenly begins to waddle away.
[ ] Ignore it, you need to get the discussion out of the way and get on to the war. Whatever that student saw through his familiar isn't worth hiding anyway, so it's no big deal.
[ ] Chase it, catch it.
-[ ] Bring it back to him personally, then scold him for attempting to invade your privacy. He should respect his superiors!
-[ ] Use your family's signature magecraft to steal ownership of this familiar. If he wanted to send it after you he should know it could be stolen. You admittedly don't need a familiar... especially one that is a duck, but you do need to teach that kid a lesson.
[ ] Write-in
