Noble considered opening the gate. She was pretty sure that she could hold back the crowd long enough to shut it behind her, but was more concerned that people might begin to trample each other if they thought there was a chance to enter.
So rather than travel along the ground, the Saint took to the air to meet the waiting crowd.
Rising above the wall, Noble frowned. Thousands of people were gathered. Didn't they have anything better to do than pick sides in a fight that had nothing to do with them?
The answer, obviously, was no. Noble sighed.
The chanting was loud, and Noble wished that she had Sarai's voice enhancement Memory to aid her as she spoke over the crowd.
What she didn't have in volume, she would just have to make up for in presence.
An oppressive force spread across the crowd closest to her, and they looked up in confusion.
"It-it's Queen Bee!" One of them cried.
'Guess I am recognizable even in a business suit.'
Noble knew it was much more likely that the person had connected her face to the now-famous video instead of her Dreamscape escapes. But at this moment, she would take what she could get.
Feeling the pressure, the crowd cleared a circle before the imposing figure. Noble lowered herself into the group, still hovering over the ground about a meter. She let her eyes swirl as she spoke.
"I am Noble, Provost of the Academy. We have heard your cry, and your point has been made. You would like justice for Changing Star. Justice is something we should all strive for! Now that your mission of awareness is complete, I ask you to peacefully disperse and head home."
There was a moment of silence as those closest to her considered her words. However, the madness of the crowd took hold of them once more, and the chant again began in earnest.
Only…there was something strange about it, an incongruity of emotions that Noble could not quite track down.
'What in two worlds…'
Noble allowed her second sight to take over and adjusted it to see the currents of emotion around her.
Sure enough, something foreign was intermingling with the flow of anger, fervor, and disgust.
Noble mentally reached out to the strange anomaly and tried to take hold of it. If she could find out its source, perhaps she could make sense of the madness around her.
However, when she tried to focus on the odd current and trace it to its root, it simply dissipated like fog and disappeared. The mood in the crowd seemed to lift with its passing.
'What was that?'
Noble didn't have much time to contemplate what had just occurred. She needed to seize the small lull while it occurred.
"You need to disband. The day is spent and so are you."
Noble realized that even if she convinced those closest to her, they had no way to leave the mob. She needed to erode it from the edges if she wanted to be effective.
"Hold that thought. I will get you all home shortly."
The flight above the crowd earned her a mix of cheers and jeers. People didn't seem to know how to feel, but they certainly wanted to feel something.
'Let me help with that…'
Noble pulled gently at the anger and hatred running through the crowd. Some people released it willingly, relieved to be rid of it. The floating Saint siphoned it away and released it, offering calm and comfort in its place.
Noble had no intention of forcibly removing people's feelings, at least not yet. Beyond it being ethically questionable, Noble knew that using that kind of power would not only raise eyebrows of the powers that be, but it could easily backfire.
So, Noble chose less forceful means.
'Easy does it…'
Her goal today was for no one to get hurt. After passing over the thousands of protesters, Noble landed in the street far from the Academy's gate. A few people stood off to one side, watching the scene with curious apprehension.
Only one of them seemed to be unafraid, calling out to Noble as she came close to the earth.
"You're the lady from that video, right?"
Noble gave him a short nod.
"Probably, but I can't talk right now. I'm a little busy."
The young man nodded, wrapping his red scarf tighter around his neck. "Are you trying to get rid of this mob? Do you need help?"
Noble appreciated the young Awakened's offer. His heart was in the right place.
"Not just now, but I'll let you know. In the meantime, keep back!"
Leaving the young man behind, Noble moved toward the edge of the crowd.
"Head home! Beat the rush before the rush beats you!"
The Saint released some of her presence once more. The crowd shifted away, giving her a wide berth.
Noble pushed her bubble about ten meters into the crowd until she was surrounded once more.
"I said, go home…"
Noble's swirling eyes left little room for discussion.
Indeed, dozens of the mundane people felt their shoulders turning under some invisible forces and their feet hopping away from the action.
Frightened by the momentary loss of control, the people didn't question what would happen if they stayed; they quickly hurried down the street, careful not to look back at the woman with the strange eyes.
"Look, they are going!" Noble pointed at those she had turned away. "Go while the getting is good. There is no reason left to stay!"
The Saint continued to siphon off any anger that was willingly released and replaced it with offered calm. More people followed the first group, peacefully heading down the lane. Working systematically, the provost was able to disperse over a hundred people without needing to confront anyone directly.
But the process was slow.
Too slow.
The government was on its way, and Noble was hoping to have the situation remedied before their arrival. More than that, people were beginning to notice the shift, and the core group of the dissenters did not like the erosion of their cause.
As Noble carved out another swath of their supporters and sent them peacefully on their way, one of the fanatics finally took action.
"Who do you think you are? Leave us alone! We will not be silenced!" The woman flung her sign at Noble.
The Saint caught the edge of it and lowered the reinforced paper to her side.
"You are outside my school, and my students deserve peace and quiet."
"You are one of THEM!" Another person cried.
While the man hadn't said who them was, it was enough to incite the crowd. The cooling tensions suddenly heated once more.
"Everyone, calm down! There is no need to shout! If you will just listen for a moment…"
Noble could feel the tide shift, and her heart sank. No one was listening.
She had decreased the crowd by a quarter, but far too many remained for all of them to be lifted into the air and sent on their way.
'Maybe if I just remove a few key players…'
Just then, another object sailed toward her head.
This one was going to explode.