Chapter 1

Eleanor sluggishly returned to her locker at the end of a very busy first day of classes and dumped the arm load of books she was carrying into her locker. She didn't regret her volunteer trip; however, it had put her very behind on her school work. Eleanor was grateful that most of her teachers were accommodating however she had a long few weeks ahead of catch up to do. She quickly grabbed the books she needed for study and homework tonight and placed them in her backpack. She mentally groaned thinking about the work she had to do. She still had a bit of jetlag and just wanted to sleep.

The cold autumn breeze picked up and whipped harshly at Eleanor's pale cheeks. She hurried into the enclosed hallways and headed towards her old dorm room. Eleanor had shared a room with a few girls above her in her first year, but they had since graduated while she had been away, and some new girls had moved in and had already been here for roughly 6 months now. She was nervous to meet them as they had already left when she arrived this morning. Eleanor's stomach growled loudly, and she chuckled softly. I guess I'm getting dinner first. She thought to herself and made her way to the dining hall.

Entering the dining hall was slightly overwhelming. It was full of students and the noise was almost deafening. So much for studying while I eat. Eleanor avoided eye contact and went straight to the line to get food. Her mouth watered at the sight of the variety of different foods staring back at her. Resisting temptation to get everything, Eleanor opted for a small plate of spaghetti and meatballs, a small cheesecake and a bottle of water. Thanking the lady who served her, she turned only to have her heart skip a beat. Where was she going to sit? She couldn't recognise any familiar faces and mentally began to freak out. Eleanor had always struggled over coming her shyness but once you got her talking, she was fine. Right now, she felt like a thousand eyes were watching her. Thankfully she noticed a spare table in the corner of the room and quickly sat down at it, drawing the least amount of attention that she possibly could. Sighing with relief, she began eating. Food had never tasted so good and Eleanor quickly demolished the plate of spaghetti. She had accidentally skipped lunch to talk to a teacher about her magic theory assignment and was starving.

A few moments later she saw movement out of the corner of her eye which made her look up. A young girl with beautiful long blue hair had stopped in front of where Eleanor was sitting with a friendly smile plastered on her face.
"Do you mind if I sit here?" She asked in a sweet voice.
Eleanor returned the smile and replied, "Not at all".

The young girl smiled and sat across from her. Eleanor couldn't get over how beautiful she was. The other girl seemed to notice her staring and Eleanor's anxiety got the best of her. "Sorry for staring. You are just really beautiful, I really love your outfit" The blue haired girl didn't seem to be offended at all, in fact her smile grew bigger.
"Naw thank you. I'm Evie"
Eleanor smiled back and gave a small shy wave. "It's really nice to meet you, I'm Eleanor"
"Hey Evie!" Evie turned to the person calling her name across the room. Eleanor's heart sank as she realised that she would once again be alone. But to her surprise and relief Evie waved the people over. She turned back to Eleanor with a smile.
"You don't mind if some of my friends join do you?"
Eleanor returned the smile and shook her head silently. Taking another bite of her cheesecake, she observed the group of three coming towards the table. The first was another girl around her age, also strikingly beautiful with her short purple hair bouncing on her small shoulders as she walked. Eleanor had sworn she had seen this girl before, but how could she? She hadn't met her yet. Taking her attention away from the girl, she observed the two boys also walking towards her. To the girl's left was a small thin boy with black and white hair who seemed to be talking to Dude, the campus mutt by his feet. And the other boy was taller and more muscular with an olive complexion and long brown hair tied up in a small bun. Eleanor had never seen any of them before, they must have joined while she had been away. Once they reached the table Evie immediately began introductions. Eleanor was relieved she was so friendly.
"Hey guys this is Eleanor. Eleanor this is Mal, Carlos and Jay"
Each of them said a quick hello and sat down. Eleanor gave them a small smile. There were a few moments of silence before Eleanor spoke up gaining courage from who knows where. "So, when did you guys start at Auradon Prep?"
The four of them looked at her strangely like she had a second head. Eleanor began overthinking and her courage quickly faulted "Sorry! Did I offend or say something wrong?" She asked quietly looking down at the table.
"No no, not at all. We just haven't met a person that doesn't know what has happened last year" Evie quickly responded, trying to reassure Eleanor.
"Are you new?" The girl named Mal asked. Eleanor shook her head her cheeks flushing slightly.
"I started one and a half years ago but I was away from school most of last year volunteering" Eleanor replied with a smile, the pride glistening in her eyes. This time the boy named Carlos replied "That's really cool. What have you been volunteering with"
Eleanor beamed at Carlos. She was so passionate about the cause and she honestly couldn't wait to do more volunteer work in the next summer break, maybe not so far from home.
"I volunteer with disadvantaged kids. I've mostly been helping out nearby kingdoms however I really want to help the kids on the Isle of the Lost one day... I feel like they've been abandoned you know but I've tried talking to the king and queen and they won't allow it..."
Eleanor stopped talking when she realised the looks they were giving to her and sighed sadly.

"Yeah I know it's frowned upon by a lot of people in Auradon but I'm passionate about it and hope to help to isle one day.." Eleanor once again stopped noticing their shocked faces. Her heart started racing and Eleanor felt embarrassed. A lot of Auradonians judged her opinion and for that reason she didn't share it a lot. She looked down at the remainder of her cheesecake, suddenly not hungry. There was a long awkward silence and Eleanor didn't know what to do, her thoughts went into overdrive. Oh my goodness... They hate me, great first impression Eleanor.

"Um it was nice to meet you guys, sorry if I offended you. Not many people share my passion" Eleanor said quietly and got up slowly, her hands shaking. She felt embarrassed and the long day was beginning to take a toll on her. She gave them a small, sad smile as she quickly slung her satchel over her shoulder, grabbed her tray and quickly left the table before any of them could reply. She could feel their stares behind her but she didn't dare turn back around. She dumped her scraps into the bin and returned her tray before rushing out of the dining hall at lightning speed, leaving the four people at the table confused.

Eleanor made it to her room, closed the door behind her and collasped onto her bed, sobbing. Maybe she couldn't handle this? She was so overwhelmed and her first day of classes finally caught up with her. She gasped loudly, struggling to breathe through the sobs. She felt so embarrassed about her interaction in the dining hall. Eleanor couldn't tell if they were judging her or shocked. Potentially both. More tears fell and Eleanor just let it happen. It was better to get it all out than to bottle it up. Eleanor was just grateful that her roommates were not there yet. That would have been more embarrassing.