This was school though and the students here wore brown.

Heaving a soft sight he stood, trying not to look half crippled, and shook his head a bit.

“Well, if its tradition there isn't a lot we can do about it. I don't want to make trouble, I was just hoping there might be a loophole for married couples or something like that. I could have missed it, since that's not really all that normal here.”

The Dean gave him a hand up, useless since Tor was standing already by the time it came, and clapped him on the shoulder, not hard enough to make the shield Tor wore turn on and stop his gesture but enough that the movement seemed real. The man smiled at him as if he'd said something particularly intelligent.

“Ah, Mr. Baker… It's always so refreshing to talk to you, do you know that? I have this same conversation ten times a year, some Count’s child that thinks the rules shouldn't apply to them personally or someone that has any of a hundred good reasons that make perfect sense to them and believes they should be the exception to the rule. You know, almost every one of them gets angry and tries to pull rank rather than just simply asking if there's a way. There isn't, but it's always nice to get out of a room without being screamed at.”

That earned a soft chuckle from Tor. What was he going to do? Blast the man through the wall for not giving him what he wanted? If it was a rule, it was a rule. Tor said this, his voice innocent enough he thought. The Dean patted him on the back again.

“Well, everyone on campus probably expects you to get special privileges, being the only Master Builder we've ever had as a student here. Even the Instructors are a little nervous. Don't worry though, I told them to just pile on the extra work and make certain you really earn your grades. Obviously we'll give you a bit of slack because of the war, and your efforts towards that, but otherwise don't expect the same cushy treatment you got before. The expectations on a master of anything are automatically higher. Even when studying another field of endeavor.” A smile came with the words at least. It was hard to see behind the long gray beard that went halfway down the black and green velvet tunic, but it was there.