Lana made the hug quick. She noticed the teachers came in around 6:30 as a way to tell them to hurry up and eat because they needed to form up for class. There was still some time but she didn't want to get in trouble for losing her bearing in uniform. This phase system was difficult for her because she was very expressive with her emotions.
She decided to take her dishes up and turn them in and head outside. Her friends followed and Blaine went as well saying he'd wait with her until they started forming up. Lana thought it was sweet.
They formed up not much later and headed to class. The students were getting used to eating fast and understanding the sooner they got there, the longer they had to eat. It was just harder to achieve on PT days.
Morning classes went well. It felt like a very short time before it was time for drill practice. This part of the day was always physically grueling. After two hours, the teacher noticed the time and decided to march them from where they were. He had them do drill practice with their backpacks on to simulate wearing a ruck sac. Lana picked up on drill pretty easily and wearing a bag to do this was nothing for her. She always had her bag anyway.
Lana was lost in thought while the teacher used his drill sergeant hat. He was calling cadence as they marched toward the dining facility. Her stomach rumbled. Military school was a great improvement to her time in the orphanage. She was at the back of formation due to being short while Dobin was toward the front corner because he was tall. Next to her, a boy, who was also taller than her, started sweating and gasping for breath. He stopped marching which induced the teacher to get in his face and start yelling at him.
"Sergeant Nis! Permission to assist?!"
"What makes you think you can assist, Cadet?"
"My ability, Sir!"
Nis looked at her and the cadet beside him who was clearly in some form of distress. "Permission granted!"
Lana quickly left formation, those behind her filling in her position on reflex. She looked over the pallid complexion, pasty skin. Her hand fell to his wrist and checked his heartbeat.
"Sir! He needs medical attention! Stat!" She took a pot from her ruck sac and grew a cactus. She then sliced it and placed the wet portion on the forehead of the cadet.
"Alright, Plantwell. Get him to the infirmary." Nis walked away to accompany the rest of the cadets to the DFAC (dining facility).
Lana draped his arm around her neck and helped him to the doctor's office. She was grateful she had that notation on her ID so she wouldn't get in trouble for not marching. As they walked, they passed Blaine's class heading the same direction as her own class. She saw Blaine glance her way then snap his head back forward before he got in trouble.
As they entered, Doctor Tall came out of an exam area and saw them approach. He took one look at the student and rushed to Lana's side. "Is this beyond your current skills, Lana?"
She nodded, "I put a freshly cut cactus against his forehead but that is the end of my skills here."
The doctor nodded, "since it's lunch time, I'll have one of the guards take you to get something to eat. I'll take him from here."
Lana nodded and a burly sergeant came from seemingly nowhere and escorted her to the dining facility.
Some of her friends were already seated when she walked in. She saw Kattie heading to the table with a tray.
"Kattie, did you want to take Sven to the park?"
Kattie nodded, "I just didn't know how long it would take you to get here."
"Let's get food to go."
Blaine overheard her. "Is this a private party or can anyone join?"
Lana smiled at him, "technically, we are not allowed in the park on Phase 1 but Kattie has a beast who needs time outside." Lana thought about it for a second. "I guess with you and Dobin having special statuses with me, now, you could get way with coming with us, if you'd like?"
It was common for students to get their lunch or dinner to go because they wanted to eat in their rooms and study or watch something while enjoying their meals.
On the way to get containers, Lana noticed Chekof doing just that, leaving with his lunch in hand. He had two boxes so full they wouldn't even close. Lana looked at his aura this time and noticed something interesting. His colors weren't that of a normal human. She watched him leave then joined Kattie and Blaine who had boxed food now.
It wasn't long before all three were all sitting on the bench waiting on Sven. The beast was quite smart and understood Kattie was on a time crunch and didn't take too long at lunch. Lana took the time to fill her bag with fresh produce once again. Blaine watched her in action and marveled at her ability.
"What's for dinner tonight?" Blaine asked with a smile.
"Pies, actually. Though I just realized I forgot to go buy pie tins."
"What size do you need?"
"6-inch. It needs to be big enough for a person to get full off of. I already have meat so I just need the tins."
Kattie jumped in, "I know you were probably asking so you could buy some, Blaine but you both are in that extra class. It makes more sense for me to buy them and have Almin take me over there after our Beast Weapons class. This way she has everything once she gets back."
Blaine thought about it for a few moments. He simply nodded his head, agreeing with Kattie.
------------------------
In Blaine's room, a certain student pulled out his communications device once more. He hit the button and waited for the beep. "Lana Plantwell was raised in the Blue Rose Orphanage. She said she was not treated well while there. End of message. Chekof out."
He then sat down, transformed his mouth and ate everything he had in front of him in a few minutes.
He got up, stowed away his device, and went downstairs to the dining facility. He threw his container in the trash and joined Karlen at the table. They discussed morning classes as if he had been there the whole time. He wasn't aware that Karlen had only just arrived himself.
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