Woods Random Legacy: Chapter 53 - Opportunity

Epsilon was all packed; there were only goodbyes left before she could leave for university.  She knew there would be no point in even trying to talk to her father, so she started with Omicron.  It was tricky to get him out to the backyard without him becoming suspicious, but the look on his face when he saw the fireworks she'd purchased made the effort worth it.

"These are awesome, Epsi!  Thanks for buying them for me!"
"Uh-huh," she said.  "Be discreet, okay?  You're underage, and you're not allowed to buy them for a reason.  I know you won't do anything stupid with them, but it's still best not to brag around the whole neighborhood.  Just enjoy them on your own."
Omicron nodded.  "I will.  You won't be there?"
She shook her head.  "No, I won't be home from my second term until after Leisure Day.  I gave them to you this early because I probably won't be home before the holiday - I intend to take an internship between terms."
Omicron's face fell.  "I won't see you for two years?"
Epsilon smiled, then stepped around the fireworks to give her half-brother a hug.

"I know.  I promise I'll write, though.  If dad is getting to be too much, remember that you can always go see Alpha."

Next on her list of farewells was her older sister.  She was mired in the terrible twos, times two, so Epsilon didn't want to bother her in person.  Alpha would only end up embarrassed at the inevitable mess of her house.  Instead, she phoned.

"Hey, Al, I just wanted to say goodbye before I headed off to university."
"You'll love it there, I know I did.  A science and medicine degree is ambitious, though!"
Epsilon rolled her eyes.  "Really?  I don't see how it could be more difficult than what you studied.  Anyway, I've always done well in school, so this should be a breeze."

"Don't get overconfident, Epsi.  Nobody's perfect."
"I'm not saying I'm perfect, all I'm saying is that I don't think I'll have any trouble.  I've got this.  I'll see you and the kids when I get back, alright?"
"Alright.  Remember to write, when you get time."

Only one person remained for Epsilon to give her farewells to.  She waited for him to arrive on one of the spiral staircases in the library, luckily not waiting for too long before he emerged from the shadows.
"You look uncertain."
"Yeah," Epsilon replied, running her fingers over the wooden posts of the railing.  "I'm just worried about something my sister said, that's all."
"What's that?" He watched her, non-judgmental as always.
"She seems to think I'll have trouble, with the classes.  I don't think so, I've never had problems with that before.  But I can't help but think, maybe she's right?  Maybe university is too much for me?"
"Nonsense." He snorted dismissively.  "You're very intelligent, and, while it wouldn't do for you to be over-confident, I believe that you are capable of handling the major.  You just have to focus."

"I know," Epsilon said.  "I'll try my best.  Will we still be able to talk like this, in my dreams?"  She wouldn't be able to bring Shadow, the cat, with her to university, due to dormitory rules.  Omicron would take care of him, but she was anxious about apart from him for so long.
Gregory considered this for a few moments before answering.  "Yes, in a way.  It's more difficult to dream together, the farther apart we are.  We won't be able to dream as frequently as we do now, but it won't be impossible."
Epsilon nodded, pushing herself off the stairs.  "That makes me feel better.  I'll miss you, in dreams and physically."

"And me as well, Epsilon.  Remember to continue your practice, as often as you can."
She nodded.  "I will.  I'll dream with you as often as possible."
Upon waking the next morning, it was time to leave.  She slipped out of bed, into her clothes, and out the door.  The least amount of fanfare, the better.

She smiled to herself as she noticed Shadow keeping pace with her along the porch.  Of course he would see her off.  Giving her familiar a final wave, she deposited her luggage into the waiting taxi, and settled into the seat, trying to relax as she drove off towards the airport.

A family tradition of staying at Malan hall seemed to be developing.  Of course, it was the most centrally-located dormitory, so it was the obvious choice.

Epsilon was the first to arrive out of the eight housemates, and she quickly found her assigned room.  She'd be rooming with another woman - Jennifer Rockefeller - but she didn't anticipate seeing her much.  She was here to learn, after all, not hang out in her bedroom.  After she unpacked, she headed downstairs to check out the common areas before the rest of everybody arrived.

Apparently, she hadn't been quick enough, because there was already somebody in the living room.  Her breath caught in her throat as she watched the young man perusing the selection of books, unable to stop her eyes from doing a quick once-over.  He was gorgeous!  She must have made a sound, because he turned, smiling, and extended his hand to her.
"Brendan Kavanaugh.  I assume you're one of my new housemates?"  Oh god, his accent!  Epsilon closed her eyes for a moment, forcing herself to clear her mind, before she stepped forward, shaking the offered hand.
"Epsilon Woods.  It's really nice to meet you."

He nodded, flashing that smile again.  "Likewise.  So, what are you here to study?"
"Study?" Her mind temporarily went blank, and she felt her cheeks flush as he laughed.  Epsilon, keep it together!  "Oh, sorry.  I'm studying science and medicine."
He nodded.  "Ambitious.  I'm going for technology myself, but so is everybody else.  That's where the jobs are.  To study science and medicine, though, you really have to have a passion for it.  You don't put yourself through that degree program just because you think you might get a fat paycheck at the end of it all."

She nodded, slowly getting over the initial rush of feelings.  He was so easy - and pleasant - to talk to, as well as being cute, that she had to remind herself to keep her head on straight.  "I was hoping to be a doctor, when I finish.  Something in geriatrics, perhaps?  I'd like to be involved in research of some kind, not just taking care of patients."
He nodded again.  "Sounds like a worthy goal in life.  I wish I had something similarly impressive to tell, but I'm still figuring things out myself.  Speaking of figuring things out, I think we've got orientations to go to."
"Ah, right!  That's supposed to be starting soon, isn't it?"  She'd almost forgotten.

"In about thirty minutes, I think.  Here, before I forget..."  He pulled a scrap of paper and a pencil stub out of his pocket and scribbled down a string of numbers.  "Here's my number, in case you need to get hold of me for some reason, get locked out, want to leave passive aggressive voicemails, whatever floats your boat."
"Good idea.  I'll give you mine too."

After they exchanged numbers, they each left to their respective orientation events.  As she entered the student center, Epsilon raised her eyebrows at the person dancing around in a llama suit.  Apparently that was the school mascot, or something?  She didn't really understand it herself, but the other students seemed to be enjoying it.

Her class schedule would be grueling.  Her first class was at 8 AM, and the last class of her day wouldn't let out until 6 PM.  She gathered the coupons issued to her for her textbooks and class supplies - at least she didn't have to buy them! - and some of the pamphlets about the college of science and medicine.

As she was headed back downstairs to the supply room, her phone beeped in her pocket.  A text?  Was Omicron alright?  When she checked the display, though, the origin of the text was obvious, even though it was from a number that wasn't in her address book yet.
"Boring nerds, all of them.  I vote we ditch orientation and meet at the coffee shop."

She smiled to herself as she tapped out a quick reply.  It looked like she'd made a friend already, maybe even something more.

Once classes started, Epsilon found herself academically challenged for the first time in her life.  Everything moved so quickly, and she found it difficult to keep up to the rest of the class.  Was this what high school had been like for her classmates?  No wonder they'd had so much trouble.

Keeping her promise to her familiar, she found time to practice her magic in secret.  She still had yet to cast a tangible spell, apart from what she'd done to her hair, but she could channel raw magic fairly reliably now.  It was just the effect that was out of her control.

She continued getting closer to Brendan, though she didn't tell him about her magical heritage.  She wasn't sure why, but she just wasn't ready to trust him with that yet.  She didn't have much trouble trusting him with certain other things, though.

He dragged her out on a date at least once each week, usually over her protests that she really needed to study.  Epsilon knew that she needed the breaks, but her grades were shaky enough that she needed somebody to force her to take them - she just felt lazy if it was entirely her idea.

Towards the end of the semester, they started studying together.  Brendan showed her the app he had on his phone to help him study, but Epsilon preferred studying from the book alone.  It was hard to say why, but it just felt more comforting.

She was finally beginning to comprehend the material, but her early assignments and classroom work were of shaky quality.  With finals looming, she feared that it might be too little, too late.

~ * ~

I'm not sure that the fireworks were a good idea, Epsi.  You know Omi has the clumsy trait.  Will you be responsible for another Leisure Day disaster?

I'm going to upload Epsilon and Omicron as downloadable sims at the same time, once I've established which one is the heir in-story to avoid spoiling you guys on the download page.  Epsilon will be posted as she left for University, in that outfit, because it's so her(hiding sexy behind business casual is totally her thing).  Omicron will be posted as...well, I don't know yet, I haven't played that far(he's 1 day to YA in my game).

I'm totally going to miss the generation 3 kids, I definitely bonded with them a lot more than I did the generation 2 kids.  I'm sad already, and the handover is still three chapters away. :(

Please note that the preceding statement regarding handover in no way relates to which child is the heir.  Handover in this context is defined as story-based handover, not rules-based handover.  I will also be tagging posts according to the story, rather than the rules, in case any of you think you're being clever. ;)