Hey guys! Assuming that my readers know something of the structure of the Collegium, (because then why would you read it?) just please don't nag me if I don't go into detail.

dIsClaIMeR: I don't own anything except plot and characters.

Chapter 3:

Aria splashed the cold water on her face; it definitely woke her up. She stumbled into her clothes like a blind woman, and kept straightening her Grays so that they sat on her just right. She looked down at herself in awe; never had she looked so…so…what was the word she was looking for?

Not beggar? Healthy? Nice?

: Try beautiful.

Aria smiled and glanced up out of the window, her very new first floor room with a window overlooking the garden. It was quite a cozy little room, or it will be, once she got some sort of décor in it. Right now the walls were a blank white, with a bed in one corner, a wardrobe in the other, and a little brick fireplace waiting to be lit. When Aria saw it, she had been delighted beyond words. Not ever had anything ever been hers, truly hers, except of course her violin, which she didn't doubt was probably broken or sold by now. Luckily that train of thought had ended when Lara had come to fetch her for her Grays, Formal Grays, and boots fitting. The lady there had fussed over her for more than a candle mark, and Lara had come back to get her.

After that Lara took time out of being of the Healer's Collegium to give her a tour of the Herald's wing. Every aspect of the gargantuan building had awed her, especially the dining hall, which was the biggest and best-smelling place she had ever been. Lara showed her the Companion's Field and stables, where hundreds of Companions lounged or grazed. The sight had been right out of a fairytale, and not nearly as beautiful as she had pictured it.

: Are you done thinking yet? Erendis stood there, gazing at her with his sapphire eyes.

: Good morning.

: Ready for the big day?

: Ready as I'll ever be, I suppose.

Today was to be Aria's very first school day at the Collegium, where she would meet new people, and eat with new people, both of which Aria had her doubts. The latter was attended to first; Aria made her way down to the gargantuan hall that served as the cafeteria.

Rows and rows of benches lined the room, and over a hundred students were milling about, socializing, goofing off, or waiting impatiently for their food. Aria tried not to be conspicuous, slipping into the room and taking a seat on the edge of a half empty table.

"Hey," said a voice nearby. She looked up to see a boy her age coming to sit across from her.

"Um, hi," Aria said, unsure of how to accept this pleasant greeting.

"Are you new?" The boy said, his blond curls falling over his blue eyes.

"Yaw, I am."

"I know what it's like to be the odd one out, it sucks, doesn't it?" He said, a glint in his eye.

"Ya." Is that all she could say? 'Ya'?

"Don't worry, everyone here has been through the same thing. You'll get through it and find friends in no time. By the way, I'm Zak."

"Aria."

At this point in the conversation, a girl walked up to the table. She had curly red hair, rather like Aria's, and bright green eyes that made her light up like a Christmas tree.

"Hey, Zak, what's shakin'?"

"Ray! How's it going? I was just welcoming a newcomer," Zak said, turning around, "Aria, this Ray, Ray, this is Aria. See? You've already made two new friends."

Aria wondered if they were a couple. Maybe not. They acted like brother and sister.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," this was Ray, holding out her hand, "I'm Rayelle."

"Hey, I'm Aria." When they shook hands, eye contact was made and Aria saw not only spirit, but kindness and compassion as well. Rayelle sat down next to Zak, putting her book bag on the floor. And boy, was that a lot of books!

"Ray, how many classes are you taking?" Aria inquired.

"I take as many as they let me. I try to learn as much as I can. I plan to be a professor here, eventually, and I want to know anything and everything, as lame as that sounds," she said.

Just as Zak was about to put in a funny pun, the food came around and his attention was averted.

"Yes! Hotcakes! Amazing!" Zak said, springing up to grab the plate from the student waiter's hands. Setting it down on the table he said, "Aria, no matter what they tell you, the food is the most essential part of your time here." This was said between mouthfuls of pancakes and strawberries. Ray settled for whipped cream.

Aria stared at the platter in awe. Never had she seen so much food in distribution. It was practically 20 pancakes to every three people! She was almost too afraid to touch it, for fear it would become a dream and disappear. But she wasn't that scared. She piled three pancakes on and took initiative from both of her new comrades and put on whipped cream and strawberries.

It was bliss.

There is no other word for it.

Managing to keep the conversation away from herself, her, Zak, and Ray talked all the way through breakfast. It was actually more Zak and Ray, and Aria just listened. She learned that their would be kids of all ages in her classes, that most of them were fun, and she also had a weapons class that was supposed to be torture.

"But don't worry about it, it's the only way to shed off meals like these," Ray said, pouring a glass of milk. "Aria, what's your first class?"

Aria had been given a slip of paper with all her classes on it and she glanced at the first one. When she saw what it was, she stared blankly at it for a few moments. Impatiently, Zak reached over and snatched it from her hands.

"Hey! You're lucky. You have music first period. I remember that class," Zak said, pointing at the paper.

"Ya, you were great at ringing the triangle," Ray joked.

Zak punched her lightly on the arm and they all laughed.

"Hey, um, shouldn't we get going?" Aria timidly asked.

"Ya, we should, here's your schedule back, Aria. Ari? Can I call you Ari?" Zak asked.

"Uh, ya, sure."

"Oh, that's so cute! I love that name!" Ray exclaimed. "Ok, well, I have private lessons, so I'll see you guys later!" She gingerly got up from the table and walked off.

"What gift does Ray have?" Aria inquired of Zak.

"Ray? Oh, well, she's pretty special," said Zak, turning serious for the first time. "She possesses a little bit of every Gift. It's really extraordinary. She wants to be a professor he because she knows she can be of extreme usefulness."

"Wow. That's amazing," Aria said, truly amazed. All the Gifts? How many were there? How does she handle it? "Is she the only one to ever have all the Gifts?"

"No," Zak said, "There was another one. But that was a long time ago. That was back when Lavan Firestorm created his legacy."

"Lavan who? Geez. I don't know anything."

"Hey, that's why you have history third period."

"Zak, what Gifts do you have?" Aria asked.

Zak glanced over at her, his blue eyes striking.

"Mindspeech."

"So, that means you can talk to people?" Aria asked.

"Uh, ya, I can communicate with pretty much anybody. But, it's nothing like Ray. Just mind-talk." Zak said, downcast.

"Just mind-talk? Zak, you should be glad that's all you have." Aria said, slightly frustrated. All her life random objects would keep floating in the air, or she would get flashes of futures she had no part of. She spent her whole life in mystery. "At least you weren't wondering your whole life why you spontaneously made objects fly in circles around your head."

Zak kept his head down then glanced up at her. "I'm sorry, Aria, I really don't know anything about you yet and I'm already complaining to you about my own insecurity."

Aria sighed. "It's okay."

Zak smiled. "I'll see you later."

Aria stood there, the hall slowly emptying. She wondered where the music room was.

Thanks for reading; sorry the update took so long. Don't panic, the next chapter will be full of much more action! Stay tuned!

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