Everyone waits in large clusters. I spot Nicole and try to make my way to her, but Reina blocks my path. She gestures at the group with Don and leads me to it. I join the group and notice that Nicole doesn't look particularly happy. I scan the crowd and spot Sanriach in another cluster, looking equally agitated. He smiles at me when he notices my attention and proceeds to wait anxiously.
"Congratulations on being selected into your Houses." Mr. Denbersen announces, earning everyone's attention. Five people join him up at the podium, he looks over at each of the clusters. I scan them and realize they are four, five. Us included. I count our group. Fifteen? We can't be House with fifteen first years? "Joining me are the House heads. They will be introducing themselves before approaching their groups to lead them away." He steps back, and a lady in a long dark robe steps forward.
Her robe holds a faintly glowing red phoenix, it shifts with every step she takes. In her right hand, she holds a katana, boasting of her culture. I look over at Nicole and Sanriach, their eyes sparkle with admiration and pride. I had heard on countless occasions that their mom's sister was a House Master at an esteemed academy. I just didn't know it was WASP.
She bows, Nicole and Sanriach follow suit hastily. A few other Japanese students do so too. I join out of respect. "Good evening. I am Hyorin Kazumi, House Master of Xerc." The crowd erupts into fits of cheer, masking their anxiety. She steps over the balcony and lands swiftly before the group. She walks all the way to Sanriach's cluster and bows to them. I see a bunch of victorious smiles, some disappointed but proud regardless.
Everyone, at least most people, wanted to get into Xerc. The groups follows their Master out of the hall. Sanriach flashes Nicole a smile to which she grins back despite her anxiety, he ignores me and leaves. Okay?
Another person steps. He wears an armour imbued outfit, his golden tail coat an accessory. The prideful glimmer of a dragon emerges from the side of his coat. He, too, leaps over the balcony but lands in a ground-shattering force. He stands tall, his body larger up close. His muscles shift beneath the bulky outfit, and it's hard not to picture him without it. "Zeke Klakov, House Master of Edyhell." He says with a boastful accent.
He makes his way to Nicole's group and scans them up and down. Before Nicole can faint from shock he walks further and stops in front of the group beside hers. "I expect no tutu bow, hardwerrk at the way." He slams his fist into his palm and leads the excited group away. No one in the group slouches, it is said he can sniff out uselessness. And when he did, no one knew what happens.
The person who steps up takes their time going down the stairs. His dark cloak sweeps down the stairs, revealing only the dark leather boots. A pair of gold eyes glow within the shadows of his cloak. He throws off his hood, revealing his long gray hair. Despite his gray head, his face is youthful; sculpted with a ghostly glow. His fangs flash from within his black mouth when he speaks.
"Peter Sylver." His black tongue seductively runs over his oddly black lips. He tucks his gray curls behind his pale neck and walks torturously towards Nicole's group. She bites her lip angrily but doesn't complain. He stops before them, the raven emblem on his cloak cawing much like a living one. He smiles, the action defying all laws. It's boyish, exuding mischief. "Come with me children, Rybben will take good care of you." The group walks with excitement, Nicole doesn't pay me any attention before she exits. I watch the only other cluster, either they are or we are_
A dark skinned woman appears in front of the group, blue petals falling over the ground she stands. She pops out from nothingness, her locs decorated prettily. Vines grow out for the ground the Edyhell House Master cracked, sprouting blue flowers all over the place. "Cylendril Astreanye." She curtseys her locs falling over her tapering pinnas. She blinks and blushes, her dark blue eyes dazzling. "I am the House Master of Cyaphra." She gestures at the spider emblem on the side of her gold bracelet."Come." She gestures to the other group and leads them out.
I feel a tight ache in my chest. If I remember correctly, Juan wanted to join Cyaphra. He said it was for smart kids, and he was a genius. Shouldn't I be in Cyaphra? I used his letter after all.
"Okay." My head snaps to the front. An old man stands before us. A serpent emblem is engraved on the side of his outfit. His long white hair is held up by traditional hair pins, but it still falls to his wrists despite this. He, too, holds a katana. My eyes rush to his face, Japanese? "I am sure you know what House you've been assigned." We all look at each other. No one looks particularly happy. "I am Yukine Natsuo, I will be your Master as I am that of Hazraq House."
He bows, I follow suit and I realize everyone does too. "Follow me, you will rest today. Tomorrow I will not tolerate laziness."
We go through a set of doors and step into a buzzing hallway, students hastle about trying to get to where they are headed. Mr. Yu, ahem.. Master Yukine leads us through, ignoring how a wave of sinistery rolls through their eyes, unto us. The clammy tension wears right off as soon as they leave. We stop at the entrance of a labyrinth.
"The hall is through here, you wont miss it." He turns to grace us with the last of his face today. "Thursday KLR 13, 9 o'clock.. do not be late." He fades into a stream of mist that waltz up the staircase besides the entrance to the labyrinth.
I stare into the pitch dark of the path. The sound of a flame echoes down the path, reducing to sounds of howls of the breeze. A boy with golden locs steps forward, his palm nestling a flame. It stains a portion of the walls orange. He steps in and whoosh, he and the flame go quiet.
"No fcking way.." The redhead boy steps back, a flame roars to life from his palm. Milton, was it? The light stains his arms, his tattoos appearing darker in the dim light. "Rave?" He reaches his arm into the dark and scatters into ashes. The rest of the group gasps while Brickette and Don just walk into the dark.
I follow behind and step into a narrow hallway; maroon carpet cover the floors all the way to the end, large and small paintings or portraits of people are ordained on the walls, balancing out the white and black vases. The vases contain water with lilypads, white flowers growing from the bases.
I walk towards the end, taking quick glances at the portraits. They appear to move from the sides of my eyes. I don't stop despite this. When I get to the door at the end, it opens before I can touch it. Two boys engrossed in a conversation stride past me, unacknowledging. Just as the make it past me, one manages to make eye contact with me. He continues like it never happened. His pink irises remain imprinted in my memory, it's the first.
I step through the door and a duller hallway graces my eyes, a set of doors face each other on either sides of the hall. A swirl of gold swarms over the mahogany floors, manisfesting into a set of gold footmarks leading the way. I assume so I follow them to a door. H256Q.
The door creaks open and I step in. My bags and suits cases catch my eyes from beneath an open spot in the wardrobe. My clothes hang over them arranged to my preference. I mutter a pray of thanks to Sullivan for taking care of me from far out of the academy.
Along the wardrobe wall, a large balcony exposes the view of the glam sky. I succumb to the beacon and find myself at the edge the balcony. I climb onto it, relishing the breeze through my curls.
There's a sharp drop in the light intensity when I open my eyes. How long have I been standing here?
The last of the sunrays slip behind the thick of a forest north of my room, a large castle-like building stands partially embedded in it, all gory glorious. A spider emblem marks its wall, Cyaphra. I look at the surrounding of my home, womdering if the see the same view of this place I presume is Hazraq. The door creaks open and I jump back into the room, a darker skinned girl stands at the entrance.
"Don't do that." She makes her way in, not bothering to explain her presence. Only when she moves to the other side of the room is when I notice another door, C113A.
A room inside a room?
I hear her muttering some words before a blast of light comes from her room. She emerges when it dies out. "There we go, all done." She then makes her way to me and holds out her hand. "Hi, I am Kisa, your roommate. Clearly you weren't expecting me, and you shouldn't_"
"And who are you?" I pry, not touching her. She retracts her hand and walks to the balcony.
Taking a deep breath, she lets out a cry of victory. My skin crawls at the action. "I am Kisa, I am witch and I happened to join Cyaphra if that's what you're asking_"
I warily approach her. "House Cyaphra?" I give her a once over. "Is this not Hazraq?"
She chuckles. "It is but then it is not. The labyrinths that lead us to our rooms are entwined, it may appear as if I am in the wrong place but I am not." She twirls, strumming the wind like strings. An enchanting sound swarms the room, palpable. "I walk into Cyaphra to get here, you walk into Hazraq to get here. When we step out that door, we step into different environments."
When she looks at me, her brown eyes flash. I am her prey and she my predator. Her hands reach for my face and instinctively I retract. So does she. Her eyes return to their resting state. "It didn't work on you_" she gasps. "Who are you? Vampire? Fae?"
Her heartbeat raises despite how collected she looks. I turn away from her and proceed to explore my room. Further past the wardrobe, right after you enter the room, a short way leads to a door. I open the door and a large bath place welcomes me. The smell of rosemary stains the bronze coloured walls, the moist stone floors leading to a private bath pool. Kisa forces her way. "Dayyyumm girl, you must be someone special. I don't have anything this big.. I am jealous."
I glare her down but she doesn't take the hint. "I am not joking, you should see my room. It's literally half yours and yet its big."
I ignore her and inspect the water in the pool, its not stagnate. Spring water. She scoops some of the water and drinks it. "It's even fresh." I slowly raise my eyes to hers, they sparkle cluelessly.
"Hello? Kisa?" A voice calls from my room.
Kisa lights up and runs out of the bathroom. I follow reluctantly and find that she has tackled whoever the person was over my previously neat bed. The two lay besides my bed, on the floor with my sheets, in a fit of giggles. When I make my presence known to the other, she leaps up and mutters some spells. Her eyes glow bright caramel, which I assume is her eye colour. "It's her.." She murmurs to Kisa.
"What are you talking about?" Kisa attempts to lower her hands that are wrapped with streams of black magic. Instantly I am drawn to it.
"She is the rogue vampire that was at the test_"
"Zoya, stop it. Magic doesn't work on her_"
"Actually.. it does. Ancient Fae magic." I walk past them and pick up my sheets. I snap and they go into flames, when their ashes descend onto the bed, they resume their former state. My bed is once again neat.
Zoya lowers her hands. "You can do magic?"
Kisa rolls her eyes. "All vampires can." They glare at each other before they look at me.
"Who are you?"
I walk to the balcony. "Andrea." I open my palm and summon Gladius, he shifts into it. His eerie glint cutting through the dark. No one could fail to catch his presence even when it was devoid of light. "Leave me."
They both stare at each other and snicker. In a mocking curtsey, they both retreat. "Yes your highness."
"What do you want?" She steps out of the shadow head lowered. It's the maid from before. "Did you do this?" I gesture around the neat room. The rosemary in the bathroom too.
"Only what's best for the mistress_" I fling Gladius at her, to which he merely grazes her neck. I know I didn't miss. I light stream of blood slips out the wound before it heals. I linger at the streak of red before finally making contact with her.
"I am guessing you won't be leaving any time soon." She shakes her head. I make my way to the bed and plop down on it. "I need you to gather any information about this academy and report it right_" she hands me a book.
I take it from her. "In there I have listed out your schedules and rooms you will be studying in as far as this semester. I went ahead and scouted for individuals I believe could be an asset as well as those you need to look out for_" I flip through the pages, lines of neat calligraphy stained on each one. A mimicry of my own. The list of names comes on a page, barely over thirty. Twelve in green, six in red and the rest in black. I don't ask any obvious questions.
"And are there any rules_" She waves her hand and the pages flip to a page written in purple. Four rules grace my eyes, I stiffen at the familiarity:
THE LIGHT SEEKS OUT THE DARKNESS, BUT THE NIGHT BEFALLS THE DAY.
FIVE YOUR ENEMIES, NONE YOUR FRIEND.
WHERE THERE'S THREE, A STORY UNFOLDS.
PLAY THE RULES. REMEMBER.
"I wrote those down so you don't forget, follow them and the academy rules won't suffice." She fades into darkness and I notice one of the crows return into my palms.
So is this she? I summon Gladius and he falls into my hand. What exactly are you? What are these crows? I look through my schedule once more. Dinner G65T HALL, right about now.
I slip off my clothes and make my way to the bathroom, she waits there. One crow is gone. I scoff and step into the water. She chooses one of my soaps and shampoos, and begins to help me prepare for the evening.