Calculus of Love Scene: Freshman Orientation

Universe: Save the Day, created by Zia

This is the first scene of Chapter 2, and takes place just after the Chapter 1.
Tell me if you can guess what makes Joseph special, in a world where there are super powers. And tell me what you think of this scene, it's rough in spots and I love feedback. More to come on this!

***

Joseph left his new room early the next morning, before either of his new roommates had stirred. Growing up, he’d always slept in late, but now Joseph was so excited he couldn’t stay in bed any longer. So he got dress early, packed his backpack, and headed out to explore the campus just as the sun was rising.

The new shoes the black wolf had bought the day before felt good as he hiked across MIT. He worked his way from the MacGregor House residence hall towards the mathematics department where his first class was going to be, which was in the Simons Building. Both buildings were right down by the Charles River, which meant there was an easy path he could take if he wanted to, but what was the fun in that?

Instead, Joseph set out to explore the row of building between Amherst and Memorial Avenue. On one side, there were large playing fields and basketball courts, on the other side the river. Joseph moved in a methodical manner, familiarizing himself with each building and landmark, poking his nose into every corner, trying doors, even peering over walls. He scouted the along the route between his dorm and the Simons building, an eager explorer in a new world. He took note of where there was concrete, gravel, or grass. Where he could squeeze between two buildings, if he could jump the fence, or if what looked like an alley was actually a blind dead end. He took note of which walls looked jump able, and how tall each of the buildings was and what kind of roof they had. There were half a dozen fraternities along the riverfront, then a dining hall, and a couple classroom buildings before he reached his destination. Simons was on one of the oldest buildings on campus and had been one of the original buildings when the school had moved to Boston. Joseph grinned, turning as he walked across Killian Court to take everything in before he headed into his class.

***

The class room looked a little like a theater. Tiers of desks and chairs formed a semi-circle around a small stage at the front of the room, where a large podium stood front and center. Behind the podium was a series of white boards, and above that a screen the professor could display things on. There were also a lot of people in the room already. Joseph had to take a seat the third row, and even then he had to sit pretty far off to one side. The big room filled up more and more, and soon there weren’t any more empty chairs.

Joseph pulled his Statistical Analysis text book out of his bag, setting the battered volume down on the desk, which was really more of a table with room for several people to sit at. He pulled out a pencil and pad, and settled into the chair, waiting for the professor to arrive and start the class.

Joseph didn’t wait gracefully, he never had, and his new surroundings made it even worse. The wolf tapped foot as he waited, his knee bouncing as he glanced around the room, trying to keep himself occupied by watching as his classmates talked and joked with each other. He studied the room, his pencil tapping a quick rhythm across the note pad in front of him. He looked at the projector hanging from the ceiling, measuring the distance to the fire exists and other escape routes from where he was sitting. The wolf even began memorizing the faces of the people around him, taking note who was talking to who, what other guys there were in the room. Which ones looked like they worked out and which ones were studying their books. Which girls each of them were paying attention too, or if they weren’t paying attention at all. Joseph tried to keep track of what everyone in the room was doing at once as a paper airplane sailed slowly through the air, floating gently as if in slow motion...

“Wow, I hope you got a good discount on that thing!” Joseph jerked his head around at the thump of a brand new textbook down beside his own, his perception snapping back to normal as the perky raccoon girl who he’d hung out with the night before sat down next to him. “I’ve never seen a used textbook so trashed,” she said with amusement. Focusing so intently on the room in front of him, trying to take it all in, Joseph hadn’t noticed it as she sneaked up behind him on his left hand side.

“Oh, um…” for a moment Joseph blanked on her name, and then said quickly, “Hi Tina. Yah, I got a pretty good deal.” Joseph lied, closing the tattered book in embarrassment. It was actually a brand new book, but he’d read it so much in preparation for coming to MIT he’d practically worn the ink off the pages with his eyes. He’d done the same to his other books as well, and he self-consciously pushed his backpack farther under the desk so she wouldn’t see.

The perky Jersey raccoon’s thin muzzle twisted into a smile, the black mask of fur on her face wrinkling at the corners as her cheeks. She had a pretty broad smile, and her long tail swished around behind her in a circle. At the front of the room, the door opened and a well-dressed mole who had the obvious, official air of being a teacher, came into the room. He went to lectern at the front of the hall, and the crowded room began to grow quiet.

Tina watched as Joseph eagerly adjusted his notepad and prepared to take notes. “You know, this is just an introductory lecture. You’re not gonna need to know any of this,” she said with an amused smirk, her tail swishing to playfully bat Joseph’s. the wolf shot her a look, but he was saved by the mole as he cleared his throat.

“All right everyone, settle down. Settle down,” he called, and the class did indeed quiet and fall into their seats. The mole stepped to the edge of the little stage at the front of the class, looking up at the tiers of seats intently. “Welcome, all of you, to the finest institute of higher learning in the western hemisphere. Once, we were simply one of the best technical schools. Now, thanks to the fantastic advances of super-science, we have pushed those boundaries beyond anything imagined a few decades ago. And now you are going to become a part of that legacy.”

The mole began to walk back and forth, speaking rapidly, but the classroom was fascinated by him, listening tin rapt attention.

"Being a student at MIT is all about opportunity. It’s about learning yes, but more importantly, it is about making something great out of yourself, of challenging yourself to reach your full potential!" The words are booming, with a deep resonance that carried across the lecture hall. It was amusing to see them coming from the very short, neatly dressed mole who was waving his arms about dramatically.

"Here, you will have the opportunity to become something much more than merely a 'smart' person. Much more than simply a good engineer. Here, you can become anything!" The black furred mole turned dramatically towards the chalk board, his arms upraised, and his short cane waving like a baton through the air. "I am a perfect example of this. I don't expect you young people to recognize me, I’m not in the papers anymore," the mole said smugly, and a lot of the people in the room laughed at what was obviously a joke. Joseph had no idea what the man was talking about as he went on, "but I have not been inactive. In the last ten years, MIT has allowed me to become one of the foremost inventors and mathematicians on the continent, and so could you!"

Joseph frowned a bit, whispering to Tina, "Was that supposed to be funny?"

Tina smirked at him, "Yes, it was."

"Why?" The wolf said, glaring a bit. He didn’t like how smug she always looked.

"Because that's Dr. Stratus, you dork." The raccoon watched his face for a moment, and when there was no spark of recognition she rolled her eyes at him. "He's one of the foremost superscientists in America! He invented power cell technology and he's the heart of the engineering program." Tina lowered her voice, smirking "And all the rumors say he was once a supercriminal back in the bad old days, before the Extrodinaries started up, but the police never caught him." Back at the front of the room, Dr. Stratus had continued talking, and whatever he had said had caused the room to burst into applause.

"Now that the boring inspiration speech is over with," the mole said dryly as the clapping stopped. "Let me welcome you to your freshman orientation class. Today, I am going to be discussing what life here at MIT is like, and what sort of challenges you'll face here." The mole said with much less drama then his open speech. "This course, like all your other first year courses, has a very simple grading system. You will either pass, or you fail.” Dr. Stratus's words turned dark and ominous, and he spoke like someone announcing the end of the world. "There will be no 'getting by' with a C in your classes here at MIT. There will be no way to pull up your GPA using easy literature and art classes. All courses outside your major are pass fail, no matter what level they are. You will sink or you will swim, and as beavers-" the mole swung his cane sharply, smacking the front of the podium where the school seal, and its stylized beaver, hung. The crack of the metal cane on seal made the whole auditorium jump. "You are expected to know how to swim as well as build things."

Some of the students laughed, but everybody was hanging on his words now as he launched into a discussion of the various traditions of the school. Joseph listened intently as he explained the organization of the school, making a transcript of the mole's words with one paw, eyes never leaving the super scientist. For once, Tina didn't tease him about the notes or look smug, but was just as equally interested.