The System has a private notes function if she asks for one.

She puts restaurants in it. Are they there yet?

Not quite! They're off the highway and going through semi-suburby areas now. Three and four story apartment buildings, lots of green spaces and parks, with shops interspersed. Traffic is fairly light, and it looks like a lot of the streets are pedestrian-priority.

"I want to suggest going to a gym and getting used to what your Foundation points do," Samedi says when she seems to be done. "There's a big shared gym facility for Intake between the Brute and Meister buildings. Pool, running track, weights and cardio machines. I bet you can get permission to moonbounce there, now that I think of it, it's just you won't be in Intake forever."

"I should take advantage while I can, then. How can I tell where the places marked for no power use are, and can I just run as fast as feels safe to me anywhere else, or?"

"The System signposts them really strongly, and there are physical signs too. There are speedster lanes in Apex, but not really in F City. Down here in F City, keep big flashy powers like throwing boulders around down unless an area says its okay, like the Sandbox we have for Shapers to play around in. Or, well, it's kind of context dependent."

They turn.

"End of this road and we're there!"

"I appreciate the ride, thank you!"

"Your daytime intake counselor is called Neha, she knows what's up. I'm sure you'll hear from her soon. You should be getting your room assignment any second now, and the door locks are System-integrated so they'll open for you."

Samedi pulls up to a particular apartment tower. One side faces the ocean, and there's a beach just beyond. He gets out and unloads her luggage from the taxi's trunk, then offers a handshake.

A beach! Maybe she will learn to surf after all. Shake shake.

To the building go her and her rolly suitcase.

There's a polite security person and an atrium and an elevator bank and signs to ground-floor facilities like counselor offices and a pool and a copy center, and a couple of Fellow Teens leaning against a wall arguing about which restaurant to go to in French and looking like they're considering coming to say hi. The System gives her subtitles. Her room is apparently 1803. Top floor.

Little wave to the French kids?

[Jean - Meister of Rifles] and [Camille - Wright - C] wave and approach!

<Hello, new neighbor!>

<Yes, hello! We were not so different from you one week ago!>

"Hi! Nice to meet you."

<Yes yes. Always with the nice meetings.> Jean says.

Camille elbows him. <Ignore him. Will you perhaps be a tie breaker for us? We are friends, but-> A shrug. <Do not agree. Maybe we also invite you along, our treat. To lunch.>

"- sure, though I'll want to put down my suitcase first!"

<Of course!>

<Naturally.>

<Don't feel pressured to come. If you must settle in, needs must. That said, Hawaiian food or classic French bakery-cafe?>

"Ooh, good question. I'm leaning bakery-cafe personally at this moment."

 Jean sighs in defeat. Camille pats his arm.

<Thank you for letting us welcome you, Elisabel! The place I have in mind is just a few minutes by bus, so we will wait here for you. Feel free to ask us me any questions you have after you deposit your luggage. I am trying to make the most of my Intake period.>

<Don't let her pressure you into overworking if you're not a studying addict.>

"I do like studying but only if it's the right things!" And she wheels her luggage to the elevator.

<We'll wait here.>

Her floor seems to be mostly empty! Aside from this one guy reading a book in a sort of common area. He has bright purple hair and eyes and no nametag.

...probably if he wanted to be talked to he'd have a nametag and maybe not be reading a book. She leaves him be and goes to put her suitcase in her dorm.

The French duo are still on the first floor. They will banter with each other while showing her to the bus stop. It seems they knew each other tangentially before both being selected around the same time, and have mixed feelings about now being entangled with each others' everything. Camille, the Wright, also thinks she's going to make it big in the Wright-equipment secondary market, fixing used magic stuff. Meanwhile Jean is interested in medical school.

"I was probably going to wind up in medical school if I hadn't been selected but who knows what I'll decide makes sense now."

<Powers sure do change a lot for those lucky enough to get the good ones. At least I have foundation points for steady hands. Unique, eh? What is that like?>

"Saved me a lot of dithering, since I couldn't trade it. Also had a non-negotiable skill come with it, mental defense thing. Somebody on the internet thought maybe there were magical reactors in space that were mind-bending to be near and I could have a future repairing those but I think they were making that up."

<...That is a point. At least most of us have the chance to trade.>

<I have heard of wizards who study demons and chaos. Only the fact that they exist, not anything about how they work, though.>

Bus is here! A bunch of people get off. They get on. You don't have to show a pass or anything.