A Tale of Tables and Apples ~ [Dappled]

    He had never once thought of entering this room before, but at the moment he was out of options. The snow had taken the meadow, the roommate had ruined his room, and he would only only create suspicion by bringing the book to the library. No, this room would have to do for now.      

    With a large step Knell entered the room, arms outstretched in some parody of a religious figure. His stern gaze swept across the masses of students occupying the room, and to his annoyance failed to locate an empty chair to rest his non-existent leg-muscles. "Attention worm creatures, your god wishes to a seat among you! Who hear is willing to make room for the most GLORIOUS and GODLY of Foresta's inhabitants?!" his disembodied voice echoed throughout the hall. Those who were familiar with him uttered sighs of annoyance, while others simply looked with disbelief. Some even opted to throw silverware at the shadowy-figure, but only one actually dared to answer his question.

    "GO SIT IN THE CORNER YOU WALKING CRAP-CLOUD!" the shout was followed by most of the room's inhabitants bursting into laughter. The laughter was short-lived though, for many grew uncomfortable at the static, manic-grin plastered on the Limbo Lord's face throughout it all. The same fellow as before made another loud remark, but this time with much less bravado. "S-Seriously dude, just go sit down. There's an empty table over in the one corner!"

    Knell wondered just why he could not make out who had yelled at his greatness twice now, but settled with the belief that the owner of the voice must not be too important if they were indistinguishable from the normal rabble. With a shrug, he made his way towards the open table, but not before spotting one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen. In the far corner was a table covered in food of various kinds, among them being a literal tower of apples. Not wanting to waste any time, he quickly phased over to the table, and began shoving as many as he could into all of his available pockets. When those ran out of available space he tucked the book he planned to study into his armpit, and scooped up as many of the fruits as he could. 

    Clutching his spoils, he began to carefully make his way to the supposedly empty table, eager to sort the fruit out and see if his precious apple from the festival had been reborn. Trying to gather forbidden knowledge from the weathered-tome would have to wait.

iris

    The day had been quite uneventful for Iris. Classes and a quick nap seemed to have drained whatever energy she had left, and despite her constant desire for sleep, she knew she needed a quick pick-me-up before getting back to her studies. Finals were coming up, and she couldn't afford to get behind. With a cup of coffee in her hand and a bag of grapes in the other, she seated herself at a fairly isolated table towards the side of the cafeteria, a small backpack slung over her right shoulder. A long, baggy sweatshirt and sweatpants nearly consumed her skinny frame, and gladly at that. Maybe if she dressed for bed, then returning to her own wouldn't be too far away. She might've managed to make a few friends like Silas, Eris, Olwen and Sandra, but she wasn't ready to go out and actively seek out more. Oh no, that would be social suicide.
    A sudden shout nearly caused the girl to choke on a grape she'd popped into her mouth, sharply jolting to attention. Well, so much for an edible pick-me-up, that yell was enough to keep her up for the next century. A tall, broad figure swept into the room, making one of the most grandeur entrances Iris had ever seen. Was this another unspoken norm of Foresta? Perhaps that was more of a paranoia-driven thought, especially since he seemed to receive an uncomfortable wave of laughter from his audience. She quickly diverted her eyes from the looming figure as soon as he was silenced by another kid, and instead focused on her food... Or, more importantly, whatever textbooks she had to gloss through before she could take another nap. She turned and leaned down to rummage through her backpack, and by the time she straightened up, the boisterous boy from before had begun to approach her table. Oh no, she thought, slowly standing and murmuring fervently, "O-O-O-O-Oh, I-I-I-I-I'm s-s-s-s-s-s-s-sorry, d-d-d-did you w-w-w-want to s-s-s-sit h-h-here? I-I-I-I can g-g-g-get out o-o-o-of y-y-your way.."

    Without a word Knell walked right past the stuttering girl, striding to the other side of the table and releasing his apple horde onto the table-top. The fruit rolled all over, threatening to fall to the floor below on several occasions, but ultimately all settled still atop the table. With his best imitation of a sigh of relief the specter sat himself upon his chosen chair, settling his book on the one just left of him. "I appreciate you offering your seat to me, nervous-worm, but that will not be necessary," he said, obvious amusement in his voice, as he finally turned to look at her.

    She lacked almost any noteworthy qualities visually. The typical horrid-worm-fashion-sense, the typical wormface that closely mirrored the countless other wormfaces he had seen, although she did seem to lack the over-entitled demeanor most humans stank of. In fact she looked downright frail, which would explain the deliciously overbearing nervousness he was sensing. This one could prove quite useful in the future. 

    "There are more than enough seats to go around. In fact, I would not mind a bit of the "companionship" as I search through these precious morsels," he held up an apple to his face, closely examining it before place it back down, "and I am even willing to share some with you, should you choose to stay. All I ask is you wait till I am finished with my task before partaking of the fruit."  For once it was easy to sound sincere as he played the part of a friendly stranger; the shy girl was both a walking buffet and the only person to ever offer tribute to his godliness without believing they were about to die.  

iris

Nervous-worm? Those were probably some of the most unexpected words to come out of this guy's mouth. It was more than obvious at this point that he was a larger-than-life kind of character with a superiority complex, tainting his pallet with a few greasy streaks of orange. Iris wasn't quick to judge, but she was human and keen to her first impressions of others. Despite his bizarre vocabulary, the girl could at least understand that he declined her offer to move. Part of her couldn't help but feel a bit let down, because now it would be unspeakably rude of her to leave him. Well, forced company was the least of her worries, but containing her anxiousness around his bold stranger was one of them.
His dated speech pattern might've been off-putting to some, but it was... Sweet? A tentative pink tinged the edges of his cheeks, barely combating the overpowering oranges from before. "I would not mind a companionship.." he ventured, perhaps in one of the weirdest ways she'd ever heard the term "friendship" described. A few quirky flecks of indigo splattered along the side of his orange-y frame, making for quite a colorful character in only a few moments' time. As he dumped an armful of apples onto the table, Iris flinched, reaching out to prevent a few apples from rolling onto the floor, "...and I am even willing to share some with you, should you choose to stay. All I ask is you wait till I am finished with my task before partaking of the fruit." Partaking of the fruit? Again, another phrase that she really wasn't familiar with. Still, she wasn't one to question other people's rituals.
"U-U-U-Um, a-a-a-a-a-all right," she murmured, trying to insert some normalcy back into the conversation. If Iris had to be the one to restore a norm in dialogue, then there must be something truly bizarre going on. And, if this stranger was going to be kind enough to share his food, then she could at least introduce herself, right? That's what could happen next? "I-I-I-I-I'm I-I-I-Iris, what's y-y-y-your n-n-name? A-A-A-A-And thank y-y-y-y-you for y-y-your generosity w-w-w-with y-y-your f-f-f-food," she managed, feebly extending her hand to shake his, "I-I-I-I-I'm i-i-in th-th-the L-L-Lyra d-d-d-dorm.." If someone was willing to show kindness to her, no matter what shape or form, there was no reason she shouldn't do the same... Or at least, that's what Minnie always said.

    It seemed this girl was somehow even more of an emotional wreck than her emotions had suggested. The amount of words she stuttered on far outweighed those pronounced normally, how this creature had made it in a society of judgmental and selfish worms was beyond even the mighty Knell. Regardless of her horrid mutilation of the English language, she seemed respectful enough when dealing with an obviously superior being, which was good enough for him. 

    Reaching out he accepted her handshake, making sure to use the more normal of his two arms. "It is good to meet you, Iris of Lyra. I am Knell, of the Serpens dorm," he said warmly before letting go of her hand. "You need not thank me about that either, I can not eat and only wish to keep one of these many apples, so it's only natural that I share that which I do not need with a kind individual like yourself."

    While he was talking the shade began the process of gathering all the apples into a large pile. "I hope you do not mind me asking, but would you by chance be a new student?" He began picking out individual apples from the pile and giving them a lookover before setting them into a separate pile.  "You see, I am of the kind that enjoys meeting new people and remembers faces well, yet I can not recall ever setting eyes upon you before this day," he explained. That was mostly a lie though, he would normally of noticed this girl sooner due to the nervousness that seemed to be her default emotional state. 

iris

    Iris was pretty sure she was just being paranoid and anxious, but there was something carnivorous and threatening about this guy's stare. He just seemed out of reach, out of touch with human reality and emotion. The palette she'd once so heavily relied on seemed to blur the colors together and removed whatever demarcation they'd established to organize the different layers of emotions. Was he becoming unreadable, or were his emotions that confusing? Regardless, she found it easier to look away from him so that this dilemma wouldn't give her a headache.
    Again, his outdated speech pattern was always slightly disarming, as if they were all preparing for war with a drake in return for the hand of a fair maiden. He was Knell "of the Serpens dorm," which sounded much more noble than a boarding school's dormitory. He then went on to explain that he might as well share any extra apples with her, and even dared to call her "kind." Maybe she was making too many rash judgments on his character, his intentions seemed so pure. "O-O-O-O-Oh, th-th-th-th-th-that's s-s-s-so s-s-s-sweet o-o-of y-y-y-you t-t-t-to s-s-s-s-s-s-say, thank y-you!" Iris's olive eyes followed Knell has he began to assemble and organize the apples, listening carefully to each of his questions, "N-N-N-N-N-No, I-I-I-I've b-b-b-been h-h-h-here for a-a-a-a b-b-b-bit, h-h-how about y-y-you?"
    She definitely had the tendency to overuse the "how about you" tactic to continue conversation, but whatever worked was more than satisfactory. Once again, his kindness was just as naive and pure-hearted as her own, and she couldn't help but smile. Why were people always so negative when there were people like Knell willing to put on a positive face? "U-U-U-Unfortunately, I-I-I d-d-definitely h-h-have not met y-y-y-you before, b-b-b-but I-I-I'm glad I-I have! Y-Y-Y-Y-You are q-q-q-quite lovely!" she exclaimed, clasping her hands together as her anxiety just barely started to dissipate as she became more comfortable, "A-A-A-A-Are you n-n-n-new, though? I-I-I h-h-h-haven't s-s-seen you around, a-a-a-and n-nobody I-I-I know h-h-h-has mentioned y-y-y-you.." Well, that last statement was out of her maybe five friends that is.

"To speak truthful, my dear companion, I do not have the best grasp on how conventional time works. I can only assume that I have indeed been here for some time due to all the fond memories I hold of the Academy and its people." They did provide easy access to research materials and food after-all. There also were not any unwanted cults forming in his name here, which was always a plus. 

Knell was not sure of how to respond to being called 'lovely', though. It was such an odd word to use to describe something. If nothing else, surely the greatness that was himself was worthy of a word of grander caliber. He was half-tempted to put an end to this charade here and now, but the potential reward would make up for any insults he received now. "Well Iris of Lyra, I am delighted that you are pleased to meet me! I find you to be quite a splendid individual yourself." 

What peaked his interest was the mentioning of 'nobody she knew'. Once again he was surprised anyone would want to be acquaintances with the naive thing, but the shade was more concerned with just who these worms were. Maybe they would be just as naive and nervous as this one. "Nobody has made mention of me?!" he placed a hand on his chest and feigned shocked disbelief. "And here I thought I was doing so well at the making of companionship. Companion Iris, would you be kind enough to tell me the names of these 'nobody' so that I may complete my befriending of the whole school?"

iris

    The girl was becoming more enamored with Knell's presence with each passing second. He was so.. Intriguing! And, based off of the fact that he considered himself to be a past member of Foresta, it gave him an air of mystery. Maybe it was the fact that she was being forced to talk to more people, but she was incredibly grateful that her kindness seemed to outweigh whatever nervous anxiety she was suppressing. On the occasion, socializing could be fun!
    It wasn't until the god-like figure seemed personally offended that Iris's heart began to sink. Had she insulted him? Were people supposed to be well-known? His "larger than life" personality seemed to have been squashed by this news. Well, it was her fault for mentioning it, and now it was her responsibility to rectify her wrongdoing. "Companion Iris, would you be kind enough to tell me the names of these 'nobody' so that I may complete my befriending of the whole school?" Knell inquired in a terribly pitiful tone. She swallowed thickly before giving a meek response, "O-O-O-O-Of.... C-C-C-C-Course.." What was she thinking? Her memory wasn't the best, and if she forgot somebody and they found out, would she lose the few friends she had? Sweat gathered in pools against her palms, and she flexed her fingers a few times to air them out. "S-S-S-S-S-So, th-th-th-there's.. E-E-Eris, S-S-S-Silas, S-S-S-Sandra, O-O-Olwen, um... O-O-Of course Miss M-M-Martina, and M-M-M-Miss Caroline... I-I-I-I think th-th-there's a boy n-n-n-named Ch-Chase? I-I-I believe th-th-that's a-a-a-all I can r-r-r-remember, I-I'm sorry," she quickly spurted out, avoiding the other's gaze as her heart thudded against her chest. Even simple requests from acquaintances were enough to send her anxiety through the roof. Maybe she was being a little over the top, but paranoia can make people pretty ridiculous.

    With great interest Knell listened as the girl listed her acquaintances, hoping to hear anything that could prove useful. And to his delight he did, for among name he did not recognize was that of the unpleasant leader of Lyra, Olwen. The twisted mind of the dark god immediately set to work devising a scheme in which all outcomes would befit only himself.

    Knell quickly morphed his grin into a frown as Iris finished speaking, and switched his voice to a concerned whisper. "Companion Iris, I feel that I must warn you of something. One of the people you mentioned, Olwen, is...well, she is not someone you want to be friends with." He turned and looked off into the distance in order to appear like he was deep in thought. In truth he WAS thinking about something, all the possible outcomes to this plan to be exact. After he was done mentally assuring himself that there was no possible way this could backfire he returned his gaze to the pawn sitting across the table from him. "There was a time I was once like you, companion-Iris. I had arrived at this school, and I a bit nervous about being around all these new people. The major difference, aside from being cursed with looking like a walking cloud of darkness, was that I was not merely as lucky at making the friends. For a while I just...I just wanted it all to end, really. But then I was approached by someone who actually treated me like a living being instead of waste-material. It was the Olwen, as you call her. Through the following weeks we became the bestest of the friends. We we're such good friends that I even shared to her my the story of my past...of how I ended up in this spectral form. And what does she do?" he asked Iris, adjusting his voice even further to imitate it quivering. "S-She laughs at me. Tells me my life is just one big joke. First time in centuries I have trusted someone with that information, and she uses it to torment me. It took me months and many trips to the guidance counselor for me to recover from that awfulness." He shook his head as if remembering just how terrible that time was for him. "Please companion Iris, do not make the same mistakes I made. Olwen may act a bit differently these days, but underneath the exterior she is still rotten to the core. Your other friends are all wonderful people, stick with them."