House of Kings

When the door opened, they saw a teenager standing before them, clad in a fine black suit with brown hair brushing down to his collar. He had a smug look to his handsome face; a fact not lost on any of them, for one reason or another.

Whether his look was smug, or he was handsome, that is.

"I take it you're most of Anubis House's lot," he said simply, his accent from the north. "I'm the newest resident of Seth House. My name is Graham Rohan."

"Um…were you coming here for any reason specifically?" Fabian asked.

"We were kind of in a hurry to be somewhere," Patricia said bluntly.

"Is that any way to speak to a guest?" Graham questioned her, "So blunt, so direct? So rude?"

"Rude?" she questioned angrily, "Do you want to see rude?"

"Patricia," Noah said, "We have a guest, clearly. Now's not the time for such things. Please, Graham, come inside," Noah offered, pulling the others away from the door to make room for him to enter.

"I thank you," Graham said with a slight nod and smile towards her, "What is your name?"
"Noah Reid," she told him.

"Noah," he said.

Patricia rolled her eyes; it was annoying.

Graham looked around the rooms that he could see from where he stood, "Anubis House looks nice. Not as nice as Seth House, however."

"I've never been to Seth House," Nina said, protective of the House and its abilities, "I wouldn't want to live anywhere else, though. Anubis House is special."

"Oh, I imagine it is," Graham said, "I imagine they're all special in their own way."

Fabian and Patricia cast glances at each other. Was he meaning to imply they all held magic of some sort? Or just special in their uniqueness? They knew that the Houses all had their own looks to them.

"Graham," Mara said, "If I may, what do you mean by newest resident? You moved in, or…?"

"I transferred here from another school," Graham told her, "This is the start of my time here. I was supposed to be in classes today, but I missed them. I only just arrived two hours ago."

"I imagine you'll be in class with your Seth House housemates," Noah said.

"I imagine so," he said, "Doesn't mean I can't come by every now and then, Noah." He made a point to use her name, a point which once more made Patricia roll her eyes.

"Would you like something to eat? Drink?" Mara asked him, acting as a decent host to their guest.

"No, I imagine it wouldn't be up to my standards," Graham told them, walking into the sitting room and looking at the kitchen from where he stood. "Such small facilities for cooking…"

"Oh, I imagine Seth House has some large, grand kitchen?" Patricia challenged.

"Patricia," Nina whispered, "You're being rude."

"I don't care," Patricia said, not whispering back, "I'll be rude if I want to be."

"You don't like me," Graham said.

"Clearly," she told him.

"I don't care," he said, "I'm not particularly fond of you either."

"Good."

"Ok…can we move on?" Mara asked, getting flustered. "Patricia? Maybe you should go and...find something else."

"No, I'm good here," she said, folding her arms.

"I don't mind," Graham said, "She can act however she wants. She'll fall in line soon enough."

"Fall in line?" Fabian questioned, finding that choice of words to be very strange. Patricia had been about to ask the same, but Fabian had said it first.

"Do you not know my name?" he questioned, "Rohan? I'm the heir to a powerful family. My name carries meaning."

"Clearly not," Patricia said, "If none of us know it, who else would?"

"Someone cultured, clearly," Graham told her, sending an insult at each one of them with those words.

"Ok, I think we need to cool down and stop insulting each other," Nina said, trying to keep a peace.

"I've never heard of them…," Mara muttered to herself, trying to think.

"Heir to a powerful family?" Noah asked, brushing the insult off right away, smiling at him.

Fabian was lost in thought, not saying anything.

"I don't care who you are, or what you say," Patricia told him, "You're clearly a jerk who thinks he has power, and the truth is that you don't. Maybe you should stop wasting our time and leave."

"Maybe I will," Graham said, "I don't see anything of worth here anyway. I have no reason to stay here any longer."

As he walked out, Jerome came out of his room, "What's with the arguing?" he questioned, stopping when he saw Graham, "Um…hi…"

"Graham Rohan," Graham said.

"Sorry, no idea," Jerome said.

Graham shook his head, muttering under his breath. "Is nobody in this place cultured?"

"I don't think you're going to make people like you when you keep talking like that," Joy told him, hanging around at the middle of the stairs. Mick was behind her, coming down with her.

"She's right," Mick said, "You sound like such a jerk."

"I don't care what people like you have to say," Graham said, "What matters is me, and my standing." He walked to the door and looked back at the assembled students; only Alfie and Amber were missing. "I'm a man of stature, and will do great things. My name means a great deal; none of you matter. I clearly made a mistake in coming here today. I won't make that error again."

He walked outside, slamming the door behind him.

"Rohan?" they heard Victor say from the top of the stairs, looking down.

"Victor?" Nina asked up at him.

"I was watching," he said, "And listening. I don't like that boy. If he were of my House, I'd punish him for slamming the door. None of you get it in your mind to do that, or you'll face punishment."

"Do you know the name?" Nina asked, ignoring what he said and pushing on with what she had been saying.

"I do," Victor said, "Family money, once very influential, that's about all there is to tell. I wouldn't have thought one of them would attend here."

Victor walked back into his office and closed his door. He had nothing else to say.

"Well…I guess our trip to Seth House is cancelled for now," Fabian said, "I don't think we want to deal with him again."

"When, then?" Patricia questioned.

"I don't know," Fabian said.

"Maybe we can find him at school tomorrow," Nina said, "Let's try that."

"Sounds like a plan," Fabian said.

"I don't know, I'd like to go to Seth House," Noah said.

"Of course you would," Patricia muttered, walking past her and going upstairs.

"Well then, until tomorrow," Nina said, going upstairs as well. The others dispersed as well, going their own ways for now.

Tomorrow they would search for the ghost boy, and for whatever they could learn, with or without Seth House to help them.