I step off the train and look around the bustling country town I've stopped at. According to the map in my hands this is where I'll be able to get to the Academy. I'm supposed to look for some kind of station in town, the map shows a path to take me outside of town but it's long winded and hard to read. My eyes wander from person to person as I walk along the gravel streets but I'm unable to ask where to go. The sun is blazing down on me and I'm sweating like crazy under my dark red plaid shirt and baggy jeans. I mumble softly under my breath, but it's barely audible to the people around me. Sometimes I wish I didn't go mute all those years ago…
An elder man catches my attention. He's surrounded by a group of people, laughing and chatting loudly while selling bundles of flowers to passer bys. "You look out of place young girl, are you headed to the Witch Academy?" I nod my head and walk up to him. "Not much of a speaker are ya?" I shake my head and he chuckles. "Do you know where you're going?" I shake my head again. "You got a map?" I hold it out to him and he takes it from my hands. "They made this much too complicated for you new students. I had a daughter go to the school. Ufta!" He returns the map to me and points to the far end of town. "Just head that way, you'll find a building that looks just like the tree-looking-thing on your map; ya can't miss it." I nod and give him a bow of gratitude. "You're welcome!" I wave as I sprint up the small market road, passing little shops with fruits and crafts. Nice little town, I guess.
At the edge of town I look up the side of a hill, where a tall building stands. A thick tree appears to have grown out from inside it. There it is! I'm almost there! I grin and take the broom stuffed in my backpack out as I continue to sprint up the hill. I slow down but it's not enough and I end up running straight into one of my female co-students. "The heck is wrong with you? You can't just barrel through here like some ape!" The girl shouted, throwing me off of her and onto the ground. I whimper softly and quickly get up to help her, only to receive a swat on my dusty brown head. "As if I need your help! This is all your fault, stupid!" I look at her with a shocked look, being caught of guard by her bitter behavior. Her glittering aqua eyes are filled with anger. "Are you not going to apologize?"
I open my words to speak but nothing comes out. I whine softly and look away a little, digging in my pants pockets. Finding my wallet, I take out a card that says I'm mute and show it to her.
"Ooh. You're that special daughter from the Serphent family." The girl I ran into rolls her eyes and picks up the things that fell out of her bag. Her friend helps her to her feet only to move further away from me. "How long is Azula going to take? At this rate she's going to miss orientation and then she'll be kicked out!"
"We should just go to the Academy without her. We don't have much time left." Her redhead friend suggests.
"You're right." The blonde girl dusts herself off from our run-in and leads the way inside the small building.
I quietly watch them mount their brooms and fly up towards the ceiling only for a swirling, green portal to appear. The two girls get swallowed up by the opening and it vanishes again. Woah. I rub my eyes and look at my broom. Guess I should be getting along too. I put my broom between my legs and shout in my head the spell for broom flight. Tia Feyre! I go straight up into the magic entrance, only to be whisked away by a powerful force along a spinning, molten tunnel. Oh my gosh I wasn't expecting this! Within a few chaotic, terrifying minutes, I am spit out onto the wide-open campus of Luna Nova Academy. I sigh and lay on the ground for a moment, still slightly shaken up from the flight. Ufta… When I've caught my breath and my head stops spinning, I sit up and make sure I've kept my collection of stuff together in my bag. I pick up the broom my mother had given me and glance around. The girls I ran into didn't seem to notice anything, I hope no one else does. I don't want to get kicked out just because of one silly rule. I hear an announcement ring through the air from various speakers scattered around the campus.
"Opening Orientation starts in just ten minutes! You must be there, or else you will be removed from the school!" A woman's elder voice yells with a strict tone.
Isn't that a bit much? Oh well. I guess I should just do as told while I'm here. If they're this strict from the beginning 'm sure I'll be in some deep trouble if they investigate my past. I run towards the center of the campus and follow a crowd of girls to a large building. The sign above the double doors is marked 'auditorium' so I assume that this is definitely the gathering place of the campus. People a chattering around me but I pay no attention as I scramble for a good seat. I end up in the far back of the middle section, but I have a direct view of the headmaster and professors. No one really sits around me until it seams the other seats are all full. When the opening ceremony begins, the seat to my left remains empty, but to my right is a short girl with amber-brown hair. She glances over at me through her little glasses, revealing adorable golden eyes. "Oh, hello. My name is Autumn Trevil." She gives me a gentle smile and holds out her tiny hand. "You must be new, I've never seen you around before." I nod and take her hand. I take out my leather wallet and show her my card. "Onyx Serphent?" She grins and gives me an astonished look. "What an amazing name!"
That's because I made it up. I smile and return the card to it's place in my wallet.
"So you're really mute? Not a peep?" I nod to confirm her suspicions. "How do you use spells then? I thought you had to say them out loud." I shake my head and point to my skull. "You just think about it? You must be so skilled!" The people surrounding us shush us as the headmaster begins a speech. Me and Autumn pass notes during the ceremony and I can't help but to end up growing attached to her. The first person to talk to me. To treat me like a normal person. No one else acts like I really belong there, and they may be right, but I'm doing my best to fit in. They could at least try to get to know me a little. Then again, it would help if I would speak.
"Please proceed to your rooms and get settled in! Good luck on your first day of classes!" The professors say, causing many of the girls to get up and scramble out. Autumn stand up and looks down at me.
"Do you know which dorm you're in?" I nod and take out a paper from one of my pockets. Before I can even hand it to her, she snatches it right out of my hand. "Ostlake? I'm in that one too. It looks like our rooms might be close together too!" She happily returns the paper to my hands. "Do you know how to get there?" I shake my head as an answer. "Well then follow me, it's a little far on the south side of campus so it'll be a bit of a walk." I get up and point to my broom, giving her a confused look.
Why don't we just fly there?
"We can't fly inside building, silly. Plus the professors don't like when we fly around all the time. They think we are lazy for not walking."
Oh.
"We should get going!" She takes my hand and leads me through the crowds. I blush softly as I follow her, keeping a good grip on her hand so we don't separate. Autumn's hands are soft, but I can feel the raised lines of scars on the palm on her hand and along her gentle fingers. Most likely the minor scratches of spell casting gone wrong or maybe even from falling while trying to learn how to fly a broom. But perhaps only I found it a bit harder to learn to fly, considering only one of my parents could ever use magic. My mother comes from a long line of witches, and though much of the family tree has been lost with time, we know she has ancestors from back during the medieval witch hunts. My father was a commoner. Emphasis on was, as my father had died in a work accident while building a new city hall in my home town. He was a carpenter and construction project manager, skilled with his hands rather than using magic to get the job done. I can remember when I was little that my mother had taught him a little magic though. And after he died, she taught me the same way. Being rushed along the campus roads of Luna Nova, I miss her patience already. Her soft voice and gentle smile matched with golden hair and blue eyes. "Onyx? Hello?" I blink a few times to let her know I'm paying attention, giving her a confused look. "You seemed like you zoned out a little. You homesick already?" I nod a little and take out my wallet. The only picture I have of them is from a few years ago when I was just a baby. They're standing together with my mother holding me in her arms. It's black and white, but the dress my mother is wearing in the picture is a brilliant white with pink ruffles. I remember her wearing it once when I was a little older; it was a tight dress but she used magic to keep it clean and fitting. Though I never thought the sleeveless style suited my mother. "Wow! Your mother was really beautiful!" She looks up at me and half smiles. "You look like you take after your father more." I pout as she laughs, returning the picture to my hands. "Are they going to come to the school some day to visit?" I point to my dad and then draw an X over his face. "Oh, he's gone isn't he?" Autumn's typically boastful voice is sudden somber and calm when she realizes what I mean. "What about your mom?" I nod and put away the picture. "That's great! My parents aren't planning on visiting, but I'm going to go spend holidays with them!" I smile and follow her to the three story dorm building called Ostlake. "This is our dorm. Most of the freshmen are in this building. Both of our rooms are on the second floor, just follow me!" With her hand in mine, I follow her up the stairs and into a crowded hallway full of girls just waiting to get into their rooms. "My room is 212. Your is just a few rooms down, okay? I'll see you later!" She releases me so she can go to her room and greet her roommates. I stroll quietly by some of my classmates and enter room 224 where one of my two roommates is unpacking.
"Hello, my name is Fay of the Devon family." The short, black-haired girl greets me. She sticks her hand out and I shake it but it's obvious she is off put by my silence. "And you?" Scrambling, I pull my wallet out and show her my card. "Hm? Oh!" She takes a moment to look over it and smiles. "Guess you'll be a quiet roommate then, Onyx. Glad to meet you! I took the top bunk bed, okay? So you can pick any of the other two." I nod and bow a little to say thank you before I go take the single bed on the right side of the room. The back wall of the room is just three desks sat side by side and a wide window while the wall alongside my bed has a couple shelves hung on the wooden walls.
It's a nice room. It's bigger than I had expected but it's still small for three people to live in. Good thing I didn't bring a lot but I hope my roommates are okay with snakes.
I set my backpack gingerly on my bed and out crawls my five foot long blood python. I pick her up and let her heavy muscles rest on my shoulders. "Oh you brought a snake?" I glance over at Fay and nod. "Does she have a name?" I nod and take out a little cage of mice labeled 'Mindy's Food'. "How cute! I hope our other roommate is okay with-" She's interrupted by the disgusted yell of our third person.
"You brought a snake into the dorms?" I nod and hold my snake up more so she can see the dazzling red and orange blotch design of my pet. "Ew." She sighs and gives us an eye roll. "I'm okay as long as you keep the thing away from me." Suitcase in hand, she strolls over to the unclaimed bed, keeping as much distance between me and her as possible.
Fay seems caught off guard by her attitude but does her best to greet the unusual girl. "My name is Fay of the Devon family, it is nice to meet you."
"My name is Melissa. I'm from the Lockwood family." The slender-framed, blond girl says with her snotty tone. "You're from the Devon family? How silly." Her pipsqueak voice let out a giggle. "You shouldn't hold that much pride for having that name. You're the adopted one after all. You're not really from their bloodline."
Fay grows quiet almost immediately; shying away from our spoiled-rotten roommate. I scowl a little and give Melissa a glare. There's no reason to act so entitled to your roommates. We all have to live here together so just be nice why don't ya?
"So who the hell are you?" Her piercing green eyes swiftly turn to me. "You and that ugly scowl of yours, you have no right to look at me that way."
"Um, Melissa.. Onyx is mute." Fay pipes up from her desk chair.
"Oh. Good. At least you're a quiet weirdo. You and your pesky snake." The snotty rich kid lets out a huff, sitting on her bed and opening her suitcase. I huff back at her and pay more attention to unpacking my things. My broom, for now, lays on my bed and I let my snake loose to find her way around our new environment. "You're just letting that thing roam free?" I nod and smirk to myself, knowing eventually Mindy will find her way to the other side of the room. Out of the corner of my eye I see Fay pick up my snake, letting it rest on her shoulders for warmth. Already I've started to drown out Melissa's rude comments as she goes on about my pet snake.
I could never have left Mindy behind. I raised her from an egg, she would be so lonely without me at home. I even got permission from the professors to bring her. So, screw you I guess.