Author Note: Lizzycello

This is just the prelude, it's very short, and it doesn't get into the story that much. The real story begins in the next chapter, but you should read this anyway!

This is a collab between myself and Teh Little Detective under our combines account, Plottless Bunnies. Yes, we spelled "Plotless" wrong, but we had to make a new account under a similar name...

Anyway, please enjoy. Teh Little Detective will have an author note at the end of the next chapter. :]

It's only every minute of every day of every single hour that I wish I were anywhere but here. Raven thought as she trudged down the hall with a scowl planted on her face. She glared distastefully at her "peers", if you could call them that. The amount of common sense that they possessed was the equivalent to a used tissue; little to none.

It wasn't the fact that the people were uneducated academically. That really didn't matter to her. The blatant ignorance of the real world was what made each and every one of the students attending The Hive academy so petty. She couldn't stand how important issues mattered so little to them. She often wondered if there was any one person in the entire school who understood, who shared the same thoughts and feelings as she did. Wishful thinking, she told herself.

Raven continued to wonder why she bothered choosing to come to this school. The students here were unsurprisingly superficial, and did not care for how she acted. Refusing to partake in wild parties that occurred in the dorms, far away from any parental guidance.

She had to constantly remind herself that this school wasn't a place for her to socialize, but a place that would look good for colleges and get her into a good school for the future. I just need to get through this school with good grades and good behavior. She was bitter and resentful; colleges did not care if your school was filled with delinquents. As long the school appeared to have good students with good grades, then that was the school they wanted students from. Which, Raven was half grateful for, because at least her future wouldn't be affected by the actions of those around her.

As hard she tried to deny it, though, she couldn't help but feel jealous of the other students. No matter what they did, there were no consequences, and they appeared to be happy. The site of them laughing carefree and having a good time with each other left the bitter feeling of longing in her chest. It almost made her regret how she set her own standards on the social ladder the day she first walked into the academy.

Not everyone completely ignored her, though. There were two overly-friendly (and admittedly very annoying) students who went out of their way to attempt conversation with her weekly. The first, a foreign student who went by the name "Starfire", her unusual name coming from her remote culture. The other, a hardcore animal activist, who considered himself the funniest class clown to grace the school in years (Raven didn't find him very funny.) She did her best to politely respond, but not get more involved with them than necessary. She wished she wasn't so stubborn with socialization sometimes; maybe then she would be a tad bit happier.

She convinced herself that it was worth it, though, for the sake of her grades, her future, and possibly her sanity.