** Hey guys, so this story is obviously a high school AU and it is just all the characters mashed together. I added some old characters for some more drama and heartbreak. As you hopefully already know, Nehemiah died in COM but she will be in this story for a little while. Rowaelin is also a big part of this story as is Manon and Dorian. It will kind of follow some themes of throne of glass at first but it's going to be much different. Anyway all the characters belong the SJM and I hope you enjoy!**

Junior year. Not yet the top but still older than most. Aelin hated it. Ever since she was little, the teachers and parents said she wasn't made to sit in a classroom. She completely agreed but the only ones who didn't were her parents. Well step parents. Arobynn Hammel and his soon to be wife Lysandra who wasn't much older than me. He was disgusting but he saved her from become a child delinquent and living in an orphanage. She would have ended up on the streets. She was nine when it all happened but she still didn't look to far into herself for the incident to sink in. It hurt more than she cared to admit. Sometimes she wondered why she still went to these preppy boarding schools.

She was going to be late if she didn't hurry up but she couldn't bring herself to make her feet move faster. It was only the third day and she was already tired of her snooty teachers who smelled like mothballs and the musty old rooms of Adarlan Prep. She got good grades. Great even but it didn't give her any feeling of accomplishment. She got most of those god grades courtesy of Dorian, her best friend. He helped her with almost every subject and when we were in freshmen year, we tried to date but it ended quickly. But she didn't want to think about that right now. Dorian was still on vacation with his parents. Usually kids who stay on vacation long enough to cut into school, they are expelled but Dorian is somewhat of an exception since his parents own the school.

Dorian is a lucky son of a bitch. He gets to miss Ms. Kaltaine's class. She is one of the only young teachers in the school and she is the bitchiest person I have ever met. Almost as bad as Lysandra. She teaches world Literature and etiquette which in my opinion should not be taught together. She somehow finds a way to ruin Literature for me and it's only the third day of class. My fist class of my alpha day is history. I'm mediocre at history but this class look promising. It is taught by professor Mort and none of the older students know if it's his first or last name. He has the attitude of an upset stomach and even after one day of his class I feel that we are going to have some heated conversations.

We were assigned seats in this class and of course I am almost dead center. The seat that is occupied at the very front is none only than Nehemiah Yitger. She was a transfer student this year from The Eyllwe Academy and I already wanted to be her best friend. She didn't speak much but when she did she had a heavy accent and it was always straight to the point. I smile slightly at her, a little mischief mixed in. She returned the smile with equal, if not more, mischief. I slid into the seat next to her and whispered

"Do you think it will be a good day with him or another painful long attitude filled lecture?" She gives me a sidelong glance then points to the blank board and his already agitated face and says, "Painful. Very painful." I chuckle and get out a pen and pad of paper. I look around the room taking in every person in the room. I scan every exit and all windows and ways to get out. I already did this the first day of class but it can't hurt to do it again. I was trained to fight when I was nine years old by Arobyn. He was never easy on me. His training was extensive and painful but it taught me many lessons, including figuring every possible exit plan in less than seven seconds.

Professor Mort prowls to the front of class and drops a heavy binding on his front desk right as the bell rings. There are several startled yells and even some people jump despite themselves. Aelin was torn from her thoughts as the lesson started.

She groaned as she rubbed her temples. History was awful just as Nehemiah predicted, professor Mort apparently didn't care what she had to say about the French revolution as he promptly interrupted her and acted as if she hadn't said anything. Needless to say she was fuming by the end of class even if she got a perfect score on the pop quiz they had on the second day of class! Physics was just as bad, professor Brullo didn't notice her even though she answered every question he asked to the class. She didn't mind him, he just seemed more interested in another student. That specific student happened to be a junior by the name of Cain.

Oh, how she loathed Cain! Always the center of attention, and he never ceased to send smug smiles or sarcastic remarks her way in the class. I hope he gets expelled. He should have gotten expelled last year, but Dorians father had sympathy for him because his parents have money and Cain has an insufferable talent of kissing higher ranked people's asses. She looked over her shoulder as if her rude thoughts had summoned him. Fortunately for her he was nowhere to be seen.

She opened the doors to the main hall to the courtyard beyond. She scanned the tables and ledges now being taken by students as they take out various foods. She looked over to the large oak tree at the center of the yard and found Chaol sitting at the base looking just as smug and bored as ever. He never seemed to show any interest in the people around him even if she knew he had taken in every detail and all the peoples faces. Now, we are tentative friends, not the best of friends but also not enemies. Last year was tough and I used him almost as a crutch. This year would be different, it must be.

When I reach him, he looks up and his scowl grows as he sees my flashing smile and two lunch bags in my arms. I am a hungry girl.

"Well, I guess your day has been as bad as mine," I smile with a little more attitude this time. I plop down next to him as he just grumbles a reply and take another bite of his sandwich. I take out an apple and bite into it loudly. Its crisp and light with a sweet tang of flavor. It a good fucking apple. I say as much rather loudly but Chaol just looks at me and scowls his signature scowl and goes back to is sandwich. I look over the courtyard again and see Nehemiah walking towards them. I smile slightly and wave her over. She spots me and smirks a little as she walks over to us.

"Are you as frustrated as me with that history class or is it just me?" I ask her with feigned seriousness. She just laughs and shakes her head. Her laugh is cultured and deep just like the color of her skin. She wears a long skirt with a cropped shirt of white that s set off by her gold bangles that cover each wrist. She walks with cat-like grace and never seems bothered by anything.

"May I join you?" Her voice is firm but light in tone.

"Of course," I say happily. Maybe we would become friends. She seems strong and funny and almost dangerous. Not in the way a bear is dangerous but she seems like the kind of person who can change the world and not think twice about it because that was just what they were made to do.

"So, what classes are you taking this year Nehemiah?"

"The usual core classes except extra foreign languages and an elective that is based in the outdoors. I don't really know what we will be doing but I am looking forward to it," she shakes her head a bit as if in concentration. She starts to take out her lunch but asks, "Do you have professor Kaltaine for English and etiquette studies?"

"Unfortunately, yes, I do, not the nicest teacher out there. Why do you ask?" she looks up at me with her dark chocolate eyes and they seem to glint with mischief. "It's just I have her too and I wanted to know if I was the only one who noticed how absolutely bitchy she is." I laugh loudly and say, "Oh no you're not the only one. I sometimes want to take her head off." Nehemiah chuckles and we launch into a conversation about our studies. I barely notice Chaol there but I don't care one bit, I have finally found someone who is a genuine human being and I want to make her my best friend.

"Aelin, do you speak any languages?" Nehemiah asks, sobering form our recent laughing fit over Mort's clothing choices. "I am fluent in Spanish, French, and Swahili but I can understand most Portuguese," I don't tell her that I was forced to learn these languages by Arobynn's hired tutors. He never gave me choices about which languages but now I am learning Chinese.

"How fluent are you in this language?" she asks me in Swahili. My head snaps up from my salad and chicken. "I think you would be surprised how much I know," I say still a bit startled.

Chaol then chose that time to clear his throat to bring our attention back to him. I pin him with a stare, almost identical to the one Nehemiah is now giving him. I like her even more.

"Yes?" I ask sarcastically, giving him another glare before turning back to Nehemiah after he just shakes his head and goes back to looking out over the field of people.

"I apologize for his attitude, I think he gets intimidated by strong willed intelligent females who can speak multiple languages," I tell Nehemiah. She laughs and gives Chaol a pointed look that sends him into another state of unending scowling. Although he seems to respect Nehemiah, he sure as hell doesn't appreciate being left out of the conversation, let alone in a different language. Just then the bell rings and we regretfully rise to our feet, grabbing our bookbags.

"What class do you have next?" Nehemiah asks.

"I have a gym class, but it's not taught by Brullo," Brullo also happens to be the gym teacher as well as my physics teacher. Thank the gods I don't have him for two classes. She nods and says she has her outdoors elective next. I give her a smile as she waves goodbye. I watch as she goes through the west wing doors and disappears. I turn back to Chaol and smile toothily at him. He just scowls but it's a lighter one, maybe even a hint of a smile. We have next period together and I am not really looking forward to it.

As we walk to the south building, my thoughts wander to Nehemiah. I want to get to know her and become her friend. Just by today, I feel lighter, like all the bad things that have happened to be seemed to lift a bit off my soul. I smile to myself as I think of all the trouble we could get into.