“It is a beautiful morning,” Dusk said, looking around. His body was still on a firm get-up-right-before-dawn schedule. Thankfully, Dusk didn't want to imagine how long he would have slept otherwise. Dusk finished his inspection under the bare, pale yellow light of dawn. Only to catch himself. He didn't need to look for traps anymore.

“That's right, no more traps.” Dusk felt a rare, bubbly feeling rise in his chest. This was happiness. Dusk walked at a leisurely pace; he didn't need to run off anywhere or runaway from anyone. It was a great way to start the morning. “One, I can now enjoy every day.” Wonder what the cabin looks like? Dusk had fallen asleep before seeing the final results. Heading to the door, he pushed it open. A tingle under his fingers let him know the magic had checked his status as the register owner.

Soon as he opened the door, a soft white glow lit up the inside of the once disgusting cabin. Dusk, once again, admired the unique and whimsical design. Like the outside that curved in the humpback roof. The inside had round rooms held up by large circular beams. That curved up into the ceiling, meeting at a large center beam. There was a chandelier lighting the space. Dusk did a double take when he saw that it was a small crystal that lit up the space and not candlelight. Amazing.

Tapping his foot along the floors, he found they were shiny with cleanliness. A beautiful cherry wood, much like the dishes he picked out. Same with the beams, which embedded themselves into the smooth white plaster finish. The round windows that he had seen boarded were now clear, clean glass that was letting in light. It would be bright and airy during the later morning and afternoon. A contrast to where he lived before, and he loved it. Walking into the open space. Dusk could see the kitchen now. Walking towards it, he noticed the lack of cupboard doors in the dark wooden cabinets and shrugged it off. A large square sink sat underneath another window. Looking out, it gave a great view of the woods surrounding the cabin.

Turning around, he took note of the towering stone fireplace on the back wall. There was so much to take in; still, how could he miss a whole fireplace? Anchored by floor-to-ceiling shelves, Dusk was eager to fill them with books or whatever else he wanted. Buying whatever he wanted. Novel concept. Dusk thought, marveling at his freedom once more. Reaching the only door in the space, he pushed the door open with his foot. Bracing himself. In case the token couldn't clean up the horror of what Dusk had believed was the bathroom.

“Ah, good.” Dusk placed his hand on his chest, relieved. Inside was a normal bathroom. A claw-foot tub to one side, a sink with mirror, and a toilet beside it. All clean and pristine white. "Wait," Dusk said. He had been around the whole space; where was the bedroom? Dusk backed up and began to search around. Looking for anything that stood out. Much like when he looked for hidden traps before leaving his room.

“Ah, there it is.” Dusk tugged at the one thing that stood out. The one end of the bookcase, unlike the others, was thicker, even after repair. Had some wear at one spot. Barely noticeable by most people’s standards, Dusk wasn’t like most people. Pulling it brought that section of the bookcase out. Revealed a whole other room. It was wide and spacious and had the same beaming as the main room. In the middle, a large square bed hung from the ceiling from braided robes. “Amazing!” Dusk pushed at the bed. He never imagined sleeping on such a bed before, but he never imagined sleeping outside either. Let's get started! Dusk felt filled to the brim with energy. It was time to make this cabin his home.

With the cleaning and maintenance done. Dusk put away what he bought, which, when it came to filling empty shelves, wasn’t a lot. The bedroom was great, but after making it with his new sheets and blankets, he figured out there was no place for clothes. He needed a closet or a trunk to store them in. That set off his mental list, which included some paper and pens for making lists. In the living room, not only were his shelves bare, but he also had nowhere to sit. The kitchen had no food, and the bathroom had no toiletries. Needless to say, Dusk was grateful for his basic magic.

He spent the rest of the month flying through his travel tokens. Duff and Coal were grateful for his business. Dusk stuck to his theme of greens and browns. Getting a comfy leather chair for in front of his fireplace. A small desk and chair could make a study space in his bedroom. He got an old wood wardrobe after horrifying the ladies at Little Scissors with his trunk idea. He needed to go back for some other clothing basics he had forgotten. Dusk was quick to find out he couldn't cook at all; following a recipe did not mean you couldn't still set it on fire. His lack of use left it more barren-looking than he would have liked to omit. Still, in a few weeks, he had the place looking more like a home.

Dusk was a little anxious on the first day of school. His hands trembled with excitement. It was all very new, and there were bound to be a lot of people. Especially older women. Wiping the imagery dirt off his white tunic for the fourth time, he looked into the bathroom mirror. Even he thought he looked a little pale. His excursions into town had not been all sunshine and rainbows. Dusk discovered that he still suffered from nightmares. They even came to haunt him during the day. Older women are the biggest tiger, next to sudden appearances. He was easier to frighten than a horned rabbit.

“I've come so far, but still...” Dusk grimaced at his own weak reflections. She can't hurt him anymore; why can't he let it go? Turning on the tap, he washed his face again. Leaving his face wet, he turned off the tap and forced himself out the door. He was deeply hoping that he wouldn’t make a fool of himself. Taking one deep, shaking breath, he snapped a token in his hand. Sending him off to school.

“Hello! Please gather at the front with the rest of the new students!” A large man with graying sides and a rounder gut than Dusk had ever seen before told him before he could blink. His eyes wrinkled in the corners, and he had a smile bigger than his gut.

“My thanks,” Dusk said, hand to chest. He stumbled alone among the growing pile of students in front of the school. The yard space out front was amazing. It was fitting for the hundreds of students that were gathering with room to spare. The school itself was a wonder. The size itself was larger than any building Dusk had ever seen. Carved from a white stone that shone in the morning light yet didn't reflect any of that light off. He wondered what kind of stone it was. A gemstone was the most likely answer. Following the crowd to stand in front of a towering blue door. That stood higher than three of his cabin homes in height.

From what he had seen in flyers. He knew that there was more to the school than the large square center that he stood in front of. It had twelve towers, ten more than the royal castle had. Each is dedicated to each of the classes taught at the school. The center building held the dorms, cafeteria, and ballrooms. The idea was to protect the students in the middle of the school from the outer towers. With the towers at different heights. He was sure that each would serve their own purpose if they ever had to engage in conflict. Not that he would know what; he was not good at battle, not even their strategies. Otherwise, he would have gotten along better with the Black family.

Comfortable, since he was one in a sea of white-robed students. Dusk looked around; there were students of all types. Every time he saw any of the beast-folk, elves, or other beings he didn't know of. He thought how lucky this country was to have a melting pot of cultures and people. If he was lucky enough, he could learn more about them.

“Hey,” a cheerful timber said to his right. Looking to his right, his eyes hit upon a creamy tan skin where a shirt should have been. The defined muscles were not enough to shock him, but most people he knew covered them up to a certain degree. There were some, though, who liked to show off their hard work. Dusk had seen them a time or two when visiting Sage. Looking up at the face of the bold man. Sky-blue eyes stared him down. They were twinkling brighter than the summer sun.

“Greetings,” Dusk offered in return, dipping his head. His eyes locked in on the large brown ears on his head, which matched the rich, earthy brown of his thick, wavy hair. Dusk's eyes couldn't resist following it down. It flowed like water and didn't stop until it reached the man's waist. Nearly hiding a fluffy wolf tail of the same color. It wasn't until Dusk looked down, passing the hair, that he noticed the man was wearing the school's robe. He didn't have the same energy as Dusk's wide-eyed first years. “Senior.” Dusk tacked on and earned a hearty laugh, along with a hand coming down to ruffle Dusk's hair.

“You are like he described!” Dusk gave off a flat, unhappy look. He couldn't say anything because he was a senior. He wasn't happy about having his hair messed up by a complete stranger. “Too soon? Sorry.” He backed up a step and put his hands up in surrender. Dusk fingered his comb to comb his hair back to his side part. He was unsure how he felt about the 'too soon' part of his apology.

“It's not an issue, Senior.” Dusk said with his most polite of smiles

“Like that, are we?” The wolf-folk rubbed his chin with a smile that was, for lack of a better word, soft. It gave Dusk a better impression of him. He felt less brutish and more... Dusk couldn't pinpoint his emotions or even why he felt more at ease at that moment, but he did. “That's better? Good.” His comment further confused Dusk.