Tessa Gray hopped out of the taxi, paid the driver, and got her luggage out of the trunk. Then she allowed herself a moment to admire the Institute Boarding School in all its grandeur. It was a castle from the 1800s. Its stone walls towered above the rest of London, and its front doors were huge, oak doors that were at least fifteen feet tall. Numerous lights were on, even though it was almost midnight.
Tessa grabbed her luggage and hauled it up the front steps. She opened the wooden doors and they glided open smoothly. Immediately inside the doors, to her right, a door had "Headmistress Charlotte Branwell" engraved in gold lettering. Seeing light peek out from under the door, Tessa knocked quietly.
"Come in," someone called, and Tessa did so, struggling with her luggage. Tessa saw someone sitting behind a large wooden desk. The woman, (Tessa assumed she was Charlotte Branwell), had brown hair gathered in a tight bun. She had a slight stature, large brown eyes, and looked to be in her early twenties.
"Ah," Charlotte said. "You must be Tessa Gray." Tessa nodded. "I am Headmistress Charlotte Branwell, but you may call me Charlotte, everyone does. Welcome to the Institute."
Tessa looked around the office nervously. It was her first time away from New York. She had lived there with her Aunt Harriet until she got her acceptance letter and free tuition to the Institute, which was one of the best schools in the world.
Charlotte went on steadily, "I have your schedule and dorm assignment and keys here. I just sent someone for your welcome folder. The welcome folder has a map of campus, teachers' numbers and emails, hours of the cafeteria, a list of clubs and sports, and a history of the school." Tessa felt very overwhelmed. She was exhausted from jet-lag, had yet to get to her dorm, and still had to lug her suitcases up to her dorm and get unpacked.