Ch.1

You know, I never would have thought that little old me, in little old Snowhaven, would be any different than any other person in this town. I mean, who would want to come to a town thats only known for the academy? That's right, I said academy. Although to be more exact, Snowhaven Academy for the Gifted. It's the only school here in Snowhaven, North Carolina, and it is super strict. Although, me and my friend always seem to find the loopholes in the rules. There is hardly any rule that doesn't have a loophole and somehow, my best friend and I always find them.

Speaking of my best friend, where is she? She was supposed to meet me here a couple minutes ago so we could walk to school together. I stood on the sidewalk in my dark blue hoodie, the hood pulled up, my hands stuffed into my jeans pockets. I looked up and down my street, looking for the blonde hair belonging to my best friend. I felt my jacket pocket buzz and HTTYD music began blaring. I pulled my phone out of my pocket, the black Umbreon case cold in my hand. The screen lit with my best friends name. "CALLING: Seirina Dochas" I tapped the "answer" button and put the phone to my ear.

"Seiri, where the heck are you? You were supposed to be here five minutes ago."

"Hey, I'm gonna be a couple minutes late. Sorry. Parents are lecturing me." I could practically see her rolling her eyes. I smiled, then sighed.

"Alright. I'll see you when you get to the academy."

"Good luck, Maya."

I hung up and sighed, exasperatedly. Today, was not a good day. I woke up late, my hair doesn't want to cooperate, and now I had to face the name calling by myself. This day couldn't get worse. Of course, just as I thought that, it did. A car passed by and splashed water on me, soaking my clothes. Great, now my clothes are wet, and its 30 degrees outside. I just shook my head and walked down the street toward the academy.

Finally, I came to the gates of the Snowhaven Academy for the Gifted. The iron bars looked cold and uninviting, just like the school. Even though the school was supposedly one of the best, you would think that it would look friendly, but really the wood walls and metal roof only made it look scary. I had been here since I was able to walk, the longest anyone had been here except for Seiri. Maybe that's why we got along so well.

I walked down the drive and toward the school, passing the statue of Snowhaven's founder, Jason Dochas, one of Seiri's ancestors. I stopped and looked at the bronze version of him sitting on a horse, a sword outstretched. I shook my head, passing it, my head bent against the cold. I reached the steps and put my foot on the first one, not looking up, and was immediately pushed back down again.

"Look who it is, guys! Freak decided to finally show up. Where's Siri? Or did she finally listen to us and ditched you for better friends?" I didn't look up, knowing that it would only make things worse.

"Hey, Freak! I'm talking to you! Look at me when I'm talking to you!" The owner of the voice shoved me, pushing me backwards, then grabbed my jacket, catching me and throwing my hood off. I met the person's eyes.

"Good morning, Neilah. What insults do you have for me today?"

"Oh, not insults. But I did notice that your clothes are wet. Allow me to help," Neilah sneered.

She moved her right hand gracefully, and the water that soaked my jacket and jeans flowed out, coating her hand. Confused? That's because everyone here at Snowhaven has some sort of ability, be it controlling an element, superhuman abilities, or even controlling time. Neilah happened to be able to control water.

I smiled and started moving around her, knowing that she wouldn't be nice, but a girl could hope right? I felt someone grab hold of my hood, dump something into it, then forced the hood over my head. Cold snow fell down around my face and into my jacket, making me shiver uncontrollably. I heard Neilah and her gang of bullies laugh mockingly, and walk around me, calling me names and whispering insults in my ears. I just grit my teeth and waited for them to leave, then I started walking to the nurse's office. It always happened like this but I was never sure what they would do next.

I walked into Mrs. Jill's office, the portly woman looking up from her computer.

"Well, good morning, Maya. What do you need this morning?"

"Can you dry my jacket? Neilah put some snow in it and now its soaked."

"Of course, dear. Just take it off and I'll dry it while you get yourself cleaned up."

I thanked her and took off my beloved jacket, and went into the nearby bathroom. I looked into the mirror. A 17-year-old girl with blonde-almost brown, curly hair stared back at me, her blue eyes bright. My name, is Maya Shapiro, or "Freak" to the popular kids. Even some of the kids that were shunned by the preps called me Freak. They called me that because everyone knew what everyone's ability was, except mine and Seiri's. I smoothed my hair down, even though I knew that it would just spring back to it's normal frizzy self. I sighed and walked out of the bathroom, walking over to Mrs. Jill. She smiled and handed me my jacket, the fabric still warm. Her ability was heat. Mrs. Jill had always been like a grandmotherly figure to me, since mine died when I was younger. I smiled and took the jacket, putting it back on, and gave her a hug.

"Maya, are you in here?" A whirl of blonde hair came into the office, also known as Seirina. She ran over to me, and looked me over. Satisfied that I wasn't physically hurt, she stepped back and I told her what happened. Her eyes widened in anger.

"Neilah did that?! She will pay!"

I clenched my fists. The objects around the room began to rattle, a couple of the lighter ones floating slightly. I closed my eyes, trying to get it under control but it wasn't working. Seiri must have noticed because I heard a soft song in my ear. Immediately, my anger disappeared, and I felt calmer. I breathed out slowly and opened my eyes. Distantly, I heard the tardy bell ring, but I knew we were going to be late, just like every day. I smiled at Seiri and hugged her.

"Come on, Maya. Time to get to class." She turned to Mrs. Jill. "May we have a pass to our class?"

"Of course, dears. I hope you two have a good day." She wrote something on a blue piece of paper and handed it to Seiri, then we both walked to our lockers, getting our books, and then went to our first class of the day, Calculus for me, and Literature for her. This was going to be a long day.

Hey guys! I am writing this story with DragonIceFury, so don't give all the credit to me. Tell me what you think!

Remember, the dark isn't always bad, so keep the fire burning!

~Cat and Icy