A/N: Hey guys, I'm back. Here's that story I was going on about. It's a little rough, I didn't get to finish my editing which... Grrr, makes me a bit mad but I got it out here to you guys as fast as I could. My cousins are in town, total buzz kills. I've been out every day for hours. Absolutely no rest for the wicked.

Uh, this is my official first story. For those of you who are reading this after my test run, I would like to say that I am so sorry. :( I never meant for it to get so lengthy and it was really holding me back from writing so I had to just cut it off at the knees. I hope you all don't hate me for it. I was using it to help me get a feel for the whole author thing. I always planned on deleting it, I only wish I could have finished it before it got so crazy.

But yeah, here is my newest story, so enjoy. Title Inspired by All American Rejects song Straight Jacket Feeling ;) Take a listen, it's wonderful

Disclaimer: I don't own the Darkest Powers


Welcome To Silverleaf

As a never ending blur of trees passed by the window, Chloe felt another wave of annoyance wash over her. It wasn't as if she hadn't switched schools before. Actually, it was normal that she would shift schools every few months because of her father's job responsibilities. Even though this move was different, it wasn't what stemmed her annoyance either. What annoyed her was the reason that she was being forced to attend this stuck-up rich kid boarding school. And that reason was clear as day. They thought she was crazy. By they, Chloe meant her aunt and father. They were the only family she had and they thought she was crazy. She couldn't figure out what annoyed her more, the part where they thought she was crazy or the fact that this was the first thing that they actually agreed on in almost seventeen years.

"Chloe, are you really not going to say anything to me?" Aunt Lauren asked as she made yet another turn. Chloe kept staring out the windows, uneasily watching the trees go by. "Chloe, you know we're only doing this for your own good. A change of scenery is just what you need to get yourself… better."

Chloe snorted, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I don't need to get better, Aunt Lauren. There is nothing wrong with me, I don't need to be fixed."

"And I don't think you need to be fixed either, honey," she replied, looking at Chloe out of the corner of her eyes. "I do think that you need some time away from the pressures of… public school. And this is an amazing school."

"It's called Silverleaf Academy, Aunt Lauren. The name brings thoughts of annoying, stuck up pricks and entitled children. How can going here of all places help me? Especially after I told you how much I hated private school and now you're forcing me to live in one."

"Chloe, it's a boarding school open to everyone from town. It's not even technically a private school so I would appreciate if you stopped judging books by their covers." Her aunt sighed. "And, well, there isn't really anywhere else to send you right now, Chloe. After your little… incident, you were kicked out of Buffalo High, and this was the best school we could find on such short notice. Not to mention that you're a legacy! I think you'll love it here."

Chloe just rolled her eyes at that as they finally broke through the trees to the school courtyard. She knew that her mother, father and aunt all attended this school when they were younger. Chloe also knew that her mother hated this school with every fiber of her being. If she hadn't, Chloe would have been enrolled in one of the feeder schools back in town and she could gladly say that she had enjoyed public school for quite a few years, no thanks to her aunt. The last ten years had been a dizzying mix of private schools and public schools, alternating whenever she moved to a new place. At least back then, she actually had a say in the type of school she was being carted off too. Chloe had actually managed to get her dad to register in a few public schools when her aunt had tried to shove uniforms and order down her throat. But after the last few months, she would be lucky to convince her dad of anything.

"Do you have everything you need?" Aunt Lauren asked, looking at the back seat warily. "It's not very much."

Chloe un-clipped her seat belt with a sigh, rolling her neck around once before looking into the back. Her aunt was right, there wasn't much in the suitcase. But it was more than enough for her stay in this posh prison. Other than her laptop and her camera, she didn't really need anything else. "Yes. Stop worrying so much, I'll be fine."

"Do you want me to come in—"

"No," Chloe interrupted quickly, straightening up from where she had slouched in the seat. "You are not walking me in. I don't need that kind of reputation hanging over my head before I've even gotten to my room."

Her aunt frowned, adjusting her glasses as she peered at her niece. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that I don't want to be known as the girl who can't even get to the front office by herself without an adult looking over her shoulder. It isn't fun." Chloe sighed, opening the car door and stepping out. Stretching her body out minutely, she turned and stuck her head back into the car giving her aunt a small fake smile that she had mastered years ago. "I know you mean the best, but no kid wants that hanging over her head. Especially since I'm coming in a month after school starts in the middle of the day. It's like putting a neon light over my back and saying, kick me."

Aunt Lauren's frown depended but she nodded nonetheless as Chloe closed the door and proceed to take her suitcase and bag out of the car. "I'll be on call for the rest of the week, but call me and I'll try my hardest to pick up. I want to know how it's going as soon as you're settled in."

"Yeah, okay," Chloe replied, slightly exasperated as she shifted her bag on her shoulder. "Bye, Aunt Lauren. I'll see you in a few weeks."

With a nod and one last worried look, Chloe's aunt drove away, leaving Chloe standing in the count yard in front of the steps of the school. Looking around, Chloe was enchanted by the actual appearance of the school. The courtyard contained one of the most gorgeous fountains that she had ever seen. It sat in the middle of a beautiful green grass circle that ended as it approached the road that her Aunt had just drove away. The fountain was made of what looked like white marble with beautiful designs carved in all around the base. It was simple, a few circular rings that got smaller as they ascended to the top with waters flowing over the sides into the beautiful base. It was breathtaking. But paled in comparison to the school itself. The school was absolutely stunning in it's design, an array of greys that melded as they constructed the beautiful building that was constructed before her. It was an old place, probably had been around for a century at the least. It stones it was made of had the slightly worn look of something that had been through many years of rain and heat. The stones led up for many stories and continued farther out than Chloe could see. She had read that there was more than one building and just from looking at it, she didn't doubt that the school probably covered a couple of acres with it's facilities. Not to mention the renowned Silverleaf Academy field that her aunt had told her so much about.

But the thing that really caught Chloe's eye was the front doors. They were white and there was a symbol carved into the centre of the two doors. Though it was beautiful in not only design but in colour, she couldn't help but feel a strange sense of foreboding wash over her at the symbol. She was sure that she had seen it somewhere before. Puling up the handle on her suitcase, Chloe rolled her bag up the steps and made her way towards the door. Hesitating for a moment with her hand on the nob, she swung the doors open and was confronted with blinding display of florescent lights. As Chloe's eyes adjusted to the new light, she was suddenly aware of a chunk of the student body moving around in front of her, their voices bouncing off walls and the silver lockers that lined them.

"Great," Chloe muttered. She stood out like a sore thumb in her attire of a tank top and skinny jeans. Most kids threw her questioning looks as they walked by but kept walking. "Good job keeping a low profile, Chloe."

Chloe made her way down the hallway, following the majority of students until she got to what she assumed was the principal's office. Just like outside, the office had white doors with a marking in between them. Absently fingering her necklace, she pushed through the double doors to come into a wide sitting room with a desk manned by a silver-haired secretary. She had a kind face, reminded Chloe more of someone's grandmother rather than a school administrator with her silver hair pulled back in a tidy bun as she typed away on her computer. Walking up to the desk, Chloe rested her hands on the counter and placed a practiced smile on her face.

"Hi, I'm Chloe Saunders. I'm transferring in today," she said as she shifted her bag to rest on her other shoulder. "My aunt faxed over the records this morning."

The receptionist nodded, opening a folder and scanning the contents briefly before smiling at Chloe. "That's right, I remember reading this earlier. Ah, Chloe Saunders. I'm Mrs. Talbot. You're a legacy, aren't you?"

Chloe's smile faded slightly. "Yes, my parents used to go here."

A look of recognition flashed across her eyes and Mrs. Talbot clapped her hands together. "Oh! You're Jennifer's daughter, aren't you! I almost didn't recognize you, with how grown up you've gotten. But I could never forget a face and you look just like your mom!"

Chloe cringed slightly at the comparison as Mrs. Talbot spun in her chair and pulled open a drawer from a file cabinet next to her desk. She flicked through the folders quickly until she let out a soft tsking sound as she pulled out one blank file. In the background, Chloe heard the sound of a bell chime through the classes and the sounds in the hallway behind her slowly rapidly start to diminish. It must be time for class, she thought absently as Mrs. Talbot rolled back to her, a bronze key in her hand.

"This is for you, dear," she said brightly, holding out the key. Chloe took it silently, turning it over in her hand as she examined it. "This is your room key. You'll be staying in the D-wing in a single. However, if you want a roommate, we can—"

"No!" Chloe yelped, shoving the key into her pocket. Flashing a smile at the old woman, Chloe hoped that she came off as nervous rather than crazy as she grabbed her suitcase handle. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell. But the room is fine. Thank you very much."

"The dormitories are farther back in the main building, this building, past the mess hall and the north gymnasium. So keep heading straight and don't make any turns until you reach the end of the hall. Then take a left, two rights, another left, the second right after that and up the stairs. From there, finding the D-wing is very easy." When Chloe only blinked at her, Mrs. Talbot smiled and rummaged through a pile of folders on her desk before pulling out a map. Handing it to Chloe, she smiled brightly. "This will help you out. Welcome to Silverleaf Academy, Chloe."

Chloe nodded before stepping back into a now deserted hallway. They must all be in class, Chloe thought absently as she started in the opposite direction of the front doors. As she walked, she took in the actual size of the school. She was a short girl, having not grown since she started high school three years ago. She was probably five-foot two and that was being optimistic. The school made her feel even smaller than she already was. The ceiling looked to be at least ten feet over her head and the hallways were spacious enough that she really had to wonder how many students went to this school. The lockers were taller than she was, closer to six-feet tall rather than five. Each locker was a shiny gunmetal grey with matching white combination locks on each of them. The lockers split off to classrooms to see students in scribbling notes in their notebooks as teachers spoke. Glad I'm not doing that, Chloe thought with a breath of relief as she continued down to the end of the hallway. Taking the left, she started down the next corridor, trying to remember Mrs. Talbot's directions.

"I take a left, a right, two lefts," she muttered to herself under her breath as she took a right down the next corridor and a left down the one afterwards. Taking the next left, she found herself at a dead end. Looking down at her map, Chloe tried to figure out where she was. She tried to trace the path that she had gone from the office to get to where she was, but she couldn't seem to find it on the maps either. "Was it left, two rights? Or was it right two lefts? Shit."

Turning, Chloe tried to retrace her steps back to the main office. Maybe, she thought as she took a left, if I can get back to where I started, I can figure out where I need to go. Except this proved to be a much more difficult task then Chloe had first assumed. All the hallways in the school looked exactly the same and after ten minutes of trying to find her way back, she was almost certain that she was walking around in circles. She had passed the same water fountain three times since she had started this endless search to get back to the start. The school was just too perfect. Chloe was having a hard time not being discouraged when she rounding the corner and, once again, came back to the same water fountain. Sighing in frustration, she shrugged off her bag and leaned against the wall beside the water fountain. Yeah, great start, Chloe, she thought as she smoothed out the map to look at again. Ten minutes in this school and you're lost. There wasn't anything on the map that symbolized water fountains, which she already knew, but she looked anyways, desperate for something that would make her feel a little bit less lost.

"You might want to turn it the other way."

Chloe jumped, dropping the map and smacking her hand against the water fountain. Letting out a string of curses, she looked over at the voice that had given her a near heart attack and saw a girl with dark hair leaning on the other side of the fountain. Chloe's cheeks flamed as she took a step back. The girl smiled reassuringly, flashing straight white teeth as she brushed strand of hair out of her eyes before holding out her hands palm up. The girl looked strangely familiar and Chloe's blue eyes moved up to meet the girl's brown ones to see the amusement dancing the depths of them as well as genuine surprise. But why would she be the surprised one in this situation?

"Hey, I didn't mean to startle you or anything. I just thought you might like to know. I mean, it'll help you since you don't seem to know where you're going," the girl explained as she slowly lowered her hands. "Unless you were purposefully trying to kill time by going around in circles. Because, if you are, you definitely doing a great job of it."

Chloe frowned, looking down at the map that was on the floor. Blowing out a sigh through her nose, she looked up at the girl again. "Do you know where the D-wing dorms are? Because I'm—"

"Lost and new?" she asked, her smile widening as Chloe nodded. "Yeah, the civilian clothes gave you away. I'll take you to the dorms, just follow me. I'm Mila, by the way."

"Chloe."

Mila turned around and walked down the hall, Chloe scurrying to keep up with her long strides as they went down the hall. As they went, Chloe took a good look at her savior. Like Chloe, she was in casual clothing instead of the school uniform, rocking a simple pair of jeans and a white shirt. This struck Chloe as odd, since it was the middle of a school day and classes were going on all around. Mila must have been skipping classes. Except that she didn't look like someone who would skip class. With her dark hair pulled back in a long Katniss style braid with a few wisps of hair framing her face, Mila looked like she was someone who would be in class early, not skip class and not wear her uniform. Maybe she just needed a day off, Chloe thought as they turned another corner. But as they continued walking, something about the girl kept tugging at her mind until finally, it clicked into place.

"Andrews!" she exclaimed and Mila's head snapped around to look at her. "Sorry, I-I just… You looked familiar. Your last name wouldn't happen to be Andrews, would it?"

"Yes," Mila said slowly, looking at Chloe as if she were crazy. "Why?"

"I'm Chloe Saunders. You used to babysit me when I lived in town," Chloe explained.

Mila's eyes clouded over for a moment before clearing with recognition and an even brighter smile than before. "Oh, you were Mrs. Saunders kid. You played—oh, what was it—Princess, no, Pirate Jasmine, right?"

Chloe smiled at the thought, more from the nostalgia the memory brought on rather than the actually memory in general. She hadn't played with her Jasmine doll in… probably ten years, maybe a little bit longer. She hadn't even picked it up since the night of the accident. Actually, when she thought about it, she wasn't sure what had happened to the doll. One day it had been there and then it wasn't. But then again, at that time it felt like a lot of things were there one moment and disappeared the next.

"Yeah, I was in a rebellious phase back then," Chloe said wistfully. Actually, I probably still am, Chloe thought dryly as she looked over at Mila again. "But back then, you were babysitting me so you must have been, what, twelve? Thirteen?"

"Is that your subtle way of asking why I'm still in this school even though I'm six years older than you are?" Again, Chloe felt her cheeks colour. She hadn't really meant it like that but she was curious as to why someone that was over twenty would best strolling around their old high school in the middle of the day instead of being at University or a job. Mila looked over at her with a rueful smile before leading Chloe around another corner. "It's okay to ask. It's just something about this place makes me want to stick around. A real home away from home feeling, if you catch my drift. D-wing was actually where I was housed too when I went here."

Chloe nodded, but she felt as though it was a lie. Just something in the way that Mila had said it didn't seem right. Maybe it was from the change of her posture or the slight tightening of her mouth, but Chloe was almost certain that Mila wasn't telling the entire truth. Not that she really was owed that. She hadn't even seen Chloe in ten years, and even then, she was only a snot-nosed brat that was attached to her income. Shaking off the feeling of wrong, she looked around to see that they were coming up to a set of stairs in a different part of the school. This part of the school, like the rest, was as immaculate as ever and had a few windows scattered along the walls in a seemingly random pattern.

"All right, so the D-wing dorm is right up there," Mila said pointing up the stairs with a relaxed smile. "I assume that the reason you were lost is because you haven't met your guide yet, right?"

Just like when Mrs. Talbot had given her the directions, Chloe blinked at Mila. "My what?"

"Did they not fill you in?" Mila scoffed, looking slightly exasperated. "Okay, all new kids get their very own guide. Usually, leaders are given a group of newbies and they show them the ropes of the school. The basics. But you've come in a month after school started so I'm guessing that you get a one-on-one guide. I hope for your sake that it's a smoking guy, cause these things can be long and tedious."

Chloe smiled wryly. She'd been through her fill of guides before and there wasn't anything they could show her that she hadn't seen before. From public school to high school, they were all the same. People who were too peppy trying to get you to join every club in the world and then never speaking to you again after it was done. I think I would take my chances with the map, Chloe thought wryly. "Yeah… I think I'll skip the guide. I have my room key, though."

"Stellar, pass it here." Chloe handed her the key and she looked at it closely, flipping it over before her eyes lit up. "Yahtzee. You're in room D525. Jeez, that's a lot of stairs. You're almost at the top level."

Chloe shrugged, looking up the stairs. "I'm fine with that."

"Yeah, I figured you would be," she laughed as she handed Chloe her key back. "So straight up those stairs. Until you hit the fifth floor and from there, well, I think you'll be able to find the dorm relatively easily."

"Thanks for you help, really," Chloe said with a practiced smile as she got ready to go up the stairs. "And I guess I'll see you around, if you decide to visit often. Cause you know where I'll be."

"Right, I'll make sure to stop by some time for a chat about old times. And Chloe—" Mila cut off suddenly, looking behind her for a moment before staring back at Chloe with a different look. Actually, it felt more like she was staring around Chloe rather than actually at Chloe. Whatever Mila was looking at seemed to surprise her since she took in a sharp breath before shaking her head, as if to clear out something that was fogging up her mind. "It was nice to see you again, it really was. I liked talking to you, we should… do it again, sometime. Soon."

Chloe smiled warily, but nodded all the same. Mila seemed nice but she wasn't really looking to settle down here. Not in this town. But it wouldn't hurt to have someone to talk to every now and again. "Yeah, I'd like that too."

Chloe turned and started up the stairs to her dorm, but something urged her to turn back just once. Call it intuition, a spider sense, anything you want really, but something in her core was telling her to turn around and look. And even though following her instincts had been the reason she was here in the first place, she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right here. But when she turned around, there was nothing there. The hallway was empty and Mila was nowhere to be seen. But… that wasn't possible. Chloe had only made it up a few stairs and Mila had made it down the entire hallway? That wasn't possible. There must have been a side hallway somewhere that I missed, she thought reasonably as she continued up the stairs, but she couldn't help the pit that was making itself known in her stomach. She hadn't even heard Mila leave, no squeak of shoes going down the hallway or anything. Actually, come to think of it, she hadn't heard them on the way here either. But that didn't really mean much because Chloe's shoes didn't make sounds like that either.

Chloe tried to force the thoughts out of her head, looking around at her surroundings instead. The staircase as a spiral, going straight up in essence but around in a few loops as it went. Every completed loop was another level up. The walls of the staircase were just like outside the rest of the building but as Chloe placed her hand on the wall, she realized that they were smooth. The people who designed it must have gone to great lengths to make sure that the stones were sanded to the perfect texture so that they weren't rough against the skin. The stairs had lights all over, but the windows were what shone in the light at the moment, the natural light making the stones glitter. There were also portraits on the walls of people with descriptions behind them. They seemed to vary form new to old in no particular pattern as the staircase continued. Just before Chloe reached the fifth floor, she came to a dead stop below a picture of a dark-haired girl with her hair pulled back into a braid with wisps of it framing her face as she gave the camera a soft smile. Though she was wearing her uniform in this picture, there was no mistaking the dark-haired girl in the picture. Tearing her eyes away, Chloe looked at the caption underneath the picture.

"In loving memory of Mila Andrews," she read in a whisper. "A loved and cherished member of Silverleaf. Gone but never forgotten."


So here ends the first chapter :) How do you like it? Too wordy? Not wordy enough? Needs more connections? xD I don't know, I'm babbling here. But reviews are always welcome, whether they're just to say you're here or to give some constructive criticism. All is welcome.

You'll be seeing the rest of the gang in the next chapter, so if you're worried about that, you don't need to be. Toodles