Dear Journal (not diary because diary sounds like a child's toy),
Hi! My name is Cecily. Last name? Wouldn't you like to know. Well, so would I. For all I know I don't have one other then the nasty words that the other students use to rhyme my name with. But I do know that my name was one that belonged to my great-great-great-grandmother. I know that my parents left me at this school for "special" children in England somewhere hidden away from civilization. Apparently I was found on the steps late at night with a note taped to my blanket I was wrapped in. Actually I have it right here, it reads:
This is Cecily. She is a beautiful and happy baby born on July 20th. She will be a year old soon. Please take her in as she is one of you. She can not know of who we are and the world I was exposed too. Or come anywhere close to New York City. Please raise her to have a bright future. Thank you and tell her that her father and I are very sorry.
Sincerely,
Her mother
Really! Drop your child off at some mental institute saying that you love her? How can some mother do that to her child? Her own flesh and blood. Some love she had for me and same goes for my father. Didn't see him stopping her from ditching me and leaving me here at hell on Earth.
Otherwise known as the Institute of Knowledge for Gifted Children.
What are they gifted in? Making my life a living hell. Except for Andrea. She was my only friend but we never had classes together. Students were sorted into different groups. I was high ranking as I was apparently intelligent and skilled. Andrea was in the second lowest ranking group but not because she wasn't smart but she was talented in working with her hands on equipment.
I was in the fighter category. The students were mean and aggressive as they were all guys except for me. All the girls were in the department for equipment or talent in seeing. What? That's what I want to know. Everyone here they...they all hide a secret. Even Andrea. It seems like they all have some group secret I don't belong in. And it was annoying how they always looked at me as if I was fragile when I asked them.
One thing I hate is when people think just because I'm a small framed, sixteen year old girl that so happens to be blonde, that I'm fragile and can't learn the truth or handle myself. NOT TRUE! I am just as tough as any guy in my entire class, and could handle myself quiet well if I was attacked. I am...

"CECILY!" My hand jerked as the pen left a trail of black ink across the neat lines of writing. The scream came again, "CECILY!"

Slamming the worn leather notebook down on my unmade bed I ran from the cramped attic that I considered a room. Only to discover a horrific scene outside the door. Dark red stained the hard wood floors smeared all the way down the stairs. Following the trail down the stairs to the kitchen door, I heard the scream again, "CECILY!"

With enough force to kill a man, I pushed the door in to swing on it's hinges. As I searched the kitchen for a lifeless body or someone bleeding to death, a voice screamed, "NOW!"

Too bad my cat like reflexes where on vacation because as stood in the doorway, the same dark red liquid as in the hallway drenched me from head to toe. It reeked like blood, but who would have a bucket full of human blood. Then I saw them pop up from behind the counter, Dylan and Allan, the two pesky twelve year old twins, who always harassed people and apparently they had a crush on me, making me the number one target.

They chuckled as I yelled, "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"

I looked at my hands stained with red as a smooth voice said from the door way behind me, "Animal blood."

I spun to see the twin's older brother that was a year older then I, Carter. He was one of the people in my class and he was the one student who sat away from the class as if he was too good for the class. Several times I tried to talk to him and yet he only answered with short sentences and then leave when he felt like he wanted.

"Well, I wouldn't think, your annoying brothers," I glared at the two boys grinning from behind the counter and then back at Carter, " would steal human blood just to dump it all over me."

He smirked slightly but it instantly left as he looked over my shoulder, "Dylan, Allan, go to your rooms. And apologize."

Dylan whined, "You can't tell us what to do!"

Allan added, "He's right! You aren't our guardian."

Carter crossed his strong arms, "Go to your room now or I will chop both of your..."

Dylan interrupted, "Woah! We're going...By the angel no need to be so graphic." They walked by me and muttered apologizes and winked at me as they left the room giggling.

I pointed at them and asked, "By the angel...why does everyone do that around here? I always hear you do the same in training too. What does it mean?"

Carter shrugged, "It's a family thing." He started to walk away, but said over his shoulder, "You better rinse that out, the blood stains your clothes and skin. "

I rung out my hair as blood poured out, "Thanks for the helpful tip."

He waved a hand, never turning around to see if I could handle the mess myself.
As I cursed under my breathe, I hauled a bucket full of water with a rag over to the pool of blood at the door way to begin scrubbing the floor like Cinderella. Too bad I didn't have any little talking rats to make me a dress to go to a ball where I would meet my prince who would whisk me off my feet and ride off into the sunset to live happily ever after. But, lets be real here fairy tales and magic don't exist the only thing magical in this world is books. Books are the proof that humans can do magic and without them I could never live in this school. My favorite room was always the library no matter how bad I was bullied or treated here I could always run to the library to hide among the stacks of books and disappear into the world of make believe. How I wish I could be doing that right now, I thought.
I rolled my eyes as I leaned into the scrubbing, "But nooooo...I have to clean up their mess, those no good, perverted, ass..."
The door swung on it's hinges once again, to hit me square in the nose,making me slide on the blood covered floor to make the contents of the bucket spill and soak my blood covered clothes. I shouted, "God Damnit! Why don't you watch where the hell your..."
My words stuck in my throat like bread as I looked up to see the black beady eyes of Madame Pricker, the principal of the school.
Her fingers tapped lightly on her hips and I could only imagine her finger nails growing to turn into lethal long black talons. Her mouth thinned as I stumbled to a standing position pinching my nose as I tasted my own metallic blood, "Madame Pricker, I thought you didn't get back from your vacation until tomorrow? How was it? Did you see your home? Was it like you..."
"Cecily, save the jabber and would you please be my guest and finish what you were about to say to me while you were cleaning this...animal blood is it? Off the floor."
I sighed, "I can explain, I didn't know it was you I thought it was one of the twins in the Equipment ranking they poured animal blood all over me and I was..."
" , this seems like events keep occurring around this marvelous school but they seem to center around you ." She paused only to say,"Once you clean your self, I will see to it that you come to my office. " She grabbed her long Victorian looking dress to examine the pool of blood she stood in, "And I will get the maids to clean this mess."
As swiftly as she had come she left out the door gliding more then walking. I grabbed a towel from the kitchen to stop the blood flowing into my mouth from my nose as I walked out the door.
Halfway up the stairs a voice laughed from the top and I saw the swish of Veronica's long black hair as she giggled and as I watched a boy, Tyler from my training lessons, followed and he pushed her up against the wall to start their make out session.
Rolling my eyes at their lack for the school rule following as I walked up the remaining steps and only when I thought I was in the clear of being noticed by the two love birds, Veronica hissed, "Alone for ever Cecily, don't worry you'll have your cats to keep you company."
Tyler smirked as he looked at me and I drew the rag away from my nose, "Oh please I hate cats plus we all know you'll be drunk and wasted away on the streets in two years with countless sexual diseases, Veronica."
"At least I'm not ugly and such a boy. And covered in blood, what did your period go terribly wrong...again?"
"At least I still get my period, you on the other hand... how is the morning sickness going? I see the baby bump is coming in nicely."
She gasped and Tyler asked, "Your pregnant?"
"Of course not, she's only just saying that."
"Oh really, so why have I heard you throwing up ever morning for the past week? Nice try Veronica, your going to be thrown away like this bloody rag." I threw it at her as she jumped away from the blood. I walked down the hall as she cursed after me and yelled some obscene things my way but I kept going. I didn't care what she thought I knew I was just the weird girl here. And I rather wanted to keep it that way.

I washed in the small bathroom connected to my room and threw on a worn black t shirt and a pair of ripped faded jeans. Pulling my hair back into a pony-tail in the cracked mirror I heard a knock faintly sound on my rickety door.
"Cecily?"
I yelled, "Come in."
The door opened and in walked Andrea tiny but when she lifted her head, big blue eyes watched my every move. She never got noticed in a crowd except by me. Even though she was a year younger then me she acted so wise and old like Yoda from Star Wars. Except she wasn't green and wrinkly. She was fair skinned and long glossy brown hair hung loosely in braided ping-tails that framed her round face.
We were like sisters even if she kept the huge secret everyone kept from me. One look at my nose made her eyes grow wide in the mirror, "What happened to your nose?"
I waved her concern away as I flopped down on the bed and threw on my worn blue converse, "It's nothing I got hit with a door by Madame Never-smile-until-I'm-dead."
"Madame Picker?" She sat down on the bed next to me, "She hit you with a door? Is that why she wants you in her office?"
"No it's what I was about to say to her when she did it that and plus I was covering in animal blood."
"I saw the maids cleaned blood off the floor I thought you finally snapped and took a blade to Veronica's throat."
I smirked. Only I could get Andrea to talk let alone crack a joke. "No I wish but the first one id take a blade too would be Tyler, just like he took a blade to me in our class."
"Wasn't it only for the lesson?"
"Maybe, but I think he was serious."
She shook her head and I asked, "So did someone send you here or did you just want to hang?"
"No, Madame Pricker sent me to get you, I'm the only one you won't cut or punch or kick or..."
I sat up and held up a hand,"Yeah I get it so might as well get this over and done with."
She opened the door for me and closed it behind us letting it set crooked on the hinges. I stuffed my hands in my pockets as I asked, "So, what's been going on with you? Have you gotten up the courage to talk to Jake yet?"
Even at the say of his name her cheeks flushed a bright red. Her blueberry eyes turned to the floor, "I finally said 'hi' to him."
I jostled her arm slightly and smiled, "Aren't you quite the flirt." She chuckled slightly, "Well, I think he likes you every time I say your name in our training practices he always looks around like you might be there."
She ran her fingers along the banister as we ascended down the stairs, "He's two years older then me...do you think he thinks I'm just a child?"
"No. I'm sure he thinks of you as a women."
She blushed a deeper red as someone cleared their throat at the foot of the stairs. Madame Pricker's beady bird eyes peered at me, "Cecily, my office immediately." She finally noticed a red faced Andrea to say, " , would you please organize the files in the library again, it seems Dylan and Allan have gotten into them and scattered the information?"
She bowed her head, "Yes Madame Pricker."
Stumbling down the remainder stairs she rushed down the hall to the grand wooden doors of the library. How I wish I could follow her and disappear among the imaginary worlds. My whole body itched to run to the doors and away from Madame Pricker's deadly stares.
"Cecily, this way and do not think about running out again, I have an important guest to see you and they do not like to be kept waiting."
"Guest?"
She began to walk and I sprinted to fall in step beside her, "Yes, they will be much pleased to see how far you've come."
"Wait, I though this was about the events before? You know the cursing, the animal blood..."
"No, but that will be discussed at a later time. I see though your nose is still intact."
I hadn't even noticed it had stopped bleeding and throbbing,"Yeah it has. So whose the guest?"
She stared straight ahead as we neared the decorative carved wooden doors to her office. "This is a guest from America."
"Just what I need, a reminder of where I can never go for reasons no one will tell me!"
She frowned and snapped, "Do try and be on your best behavior, Cecily, this guest will not take kindly to you snarky and rude attitude."
I rolled my eyes, "I am not rude but I will take snarky, I've always wanted to be classified as snarky."
Madame Pricker pushed the doors open and stepped inside me following at her heels only to reveal a women in her late thirties gazing at a portrait on the wall. Madame Pricker closed the door behind me as I took to leaning against the wall,"Cecily I would like you to meet..."
The women had long sweeping black hair that reached to her waist and had startling blue eyes. As she walked toward us her black high heels that matched her black attire clicked on the marble floors. When she outstretched a hand to me I saw thin silver lines run up and down her wrist and arms. Her eyes pierced mine and I felt memories stir as she said,"Ms. Lightwood, Isabelle Lightwood."