Mel groaned as she glanced at the clock on the wall, running a hand through her messy black hair. She had overslept … Again … By that point, she wasn't even surprised. No matter how hard she tried to wake up in time for class, she never succeeded. It was hopeless. She simply wasn't meant to be on time. Unfortunately, she knew that meant she would probably end up staying after class for detention again. She wasn't looking forward to that.

Reluctantly she dragged herself out of bed and pulled on her school robe, grabbing her staff before heading out her room. After taking a moment to rub the tiredness out of her eyes, she picked up the pace and rushed off down the deserted hallway, through the school courtyard and through the door to the magic classrooms.

Professor Dorwin, the storm magic professor, was in the middle of a lecture, telling his students all about the importance of being able to control lightning, when Mel came bursting in, skidding to a halt as her Professor's gaze locked onto her. One look at those hard grey eyes was enough to cause her to gulp. Out of all the teachers that had ever caught her arriving late, Professor Dorwin was by far the worst. He had absolutely no tolerance for tardiness.

"How nice of you to finally join us, Miss Darkthrop," Dorwin said with scowl. "I hope you are well rested, because you will be spending the whole night washing dishes in the school's kitchen!"

"Spiteful old geezer," Mel muttered to herself as she made her way over to her desk, keeping her head down.

She could hear Arana and her cronies snickering from a couple desks over. Her fists clenched instinctively. Life at Shadwood had not gotten any easier since her return. Everyone in the entire school knew who she was, as well as what she had done. She was treated basically like a criminal, stripped of all rights to leave the school. The teachers hated her, and kept a close eye on her. Half of the student population feared her, and the other half continued to make fun of her. With Edward gone, she had no friends left. She had never missed him so much.

"As I was saying, the ability to conjure lightning is one of the most powerful spells you will ever have the privilege to learn as a storm mage," Professor Dorwin continued on with his lecture. "However, it is also one of the most dangerous, and if not controlled properly, it can kill you."

Mel stifled a yawn as the professor went on and on. His voice was so monotonous that it made her feel like going back to sleep. Her eyes had only closed for no longer than a minute before they shot open again as Professor Dorwin suddenly let out a scream of pain. Mel was shocked to find that a bolt of lighting had come out of nowhere and struck him, causing his old wore out body to jerk back and forth uncontrollably. Gasps echoed throughout the room as the students looked around, trying to figure out who had done it.

"Who did that?!" Professor Dorwin roared, his eyes roaming the classroom. You can bet that they eventually landed on Mel. "Miss Darkthrop! I know it was you! No one else in this class is powerful enough to control lightning like that, nor are they malicious enough to use it on a teacher!"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that, Professor," an unfamiliar voice claimed. "She's not the only powerful mage in the room."

That was when Mel saw him. Sitting at the very back of the classroom was a boy with vibrant green hair, golden eyes, and a mischievous looking grin across his face. Mel knew in an instant that he was the true perpetrator. She was surprised, not because of his appearance or because he had electrocuted the teacher, though that was impressive. No, she was surprised that he had owned up to it. He could have easily just let her take the blame. After all, that was what anyone else would have done. That was what she would have done.

Professor Dorwin's intense gaze transferred onto him, as he walked over to his desk. "Is it true, Mr. Tenobor? What purpose would you possibly have for such actions?"

The boy gave a nonchalant shrug, "I was tired of listening to you."

Mel snorted. At least she wasn't the only one who felt that way.

Professor Dorwin glared over at Mel for a moment before returning his attention towards the green haired boy. "I expected better from you, especially considering who your great ancestor was," he said with a hint of disappointment to be heard in his voice. "Perhaps you will learn to show more respect to your superiors after a night of washing dishes with Miss Darkthrop."

The boy scoffed, "I doubt it, but you can try."

The professor ignored his remark and returned to his own desk.

The rest of the day passed without incident, and before long it was time for Mel to serve her detention. As soon as dinner was over, she went and returned her staff to her room before heading over to the kitchen. When she arrived she found the green haired boy waiting outside the door, a book in hand.

Mel raised a brow at the sight. "You didn't strike me as a bookworm," she said, straining her neck to get a look at the cover. From what she could see, it read 'Great Graduates of Shadwood Academy ~ The Adventures of Lars Tenobor'. The name rang a bell to her. She remembered that Professor Dorwin had called him Mr. Tenobor in class, but for some reason she felt as though she had heard the name somewhere else before. The only problem was she couldn't remember where.

Looking up from his book, the boy almost seemed surprised to see her. "What did I strike you as?"

"Someone who'd rather not be stuck in school all day, listening to boring professors," Mel stated.

He grinned at her. "That's funny, cause I can say the same about you."

Mel felt the blood rush to her cheeks. She didn't know why, but she found that she felt odd when he grinned at her like that. It was a feeling she hadn't experienced in a long time. It was almost as if she was nervous for some reason. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest, and her palms were all sweaty. The last time she had felt that way was … No! She shook those memories out of her head, refusing to think back on them.

"So, are you ready to get your hands wet and wash some dishes?" she asked a bit awkwardly.

He shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure what the process entails, but I'm sure I will learn quickly."

That's when it suddenly hit her. This boy was a noble. She felt rather dumb for not having realized it sooner. After all, a majority of the students at Shadwood did come from noble families. She was an exception. To be honest, she wasn't sure how to feel about him being a noble. Had she met him years ago, before the quest for the orbs had even begun, she probably would have hated him for that fact alone, but she didn't. Having gotten to know Edward as well as she had, she realized now that nobles were not all bad. Just like how not all vampires were bad. She had come a long way, and she almost felt proud of herself for that.

Pushing open the door to the kitchen, the two of them stepped in and went straight toward the industrial sized sinks, which were overloaded with dirty dishes.

"I've never seen so many dishes in all my life," the boy said, his face looking a bit pale.

"Sadly, I'm used to it. I usually end up doing the dishes at least once a week, if not more."

"It sounds like you're quite the little troublemaker," he said with a smirk.

"I could say the same about you," Mel quipped.

"It sounds like we're going to be spending a lot of time together," he noted. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lars Tenobor VIII."

She was tempted to laugh at the fact that he was the eighth person to have the same name in his family, but she refrained and instead stuck her hand out towards him. "I'm Mel."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mel," he shook her hand. "I look forward to working with a fellow troublemaker."

Mel smiled. Washing all those dishes suddenly didn't seem quite so bad.