Chapter 4
When Sam woke up, she felt very groggy, almost as if she had been drugged. I must have fallen asleep in the library like Azazel said I would. Someone must have found me and brought me back to my dorm. I wonder what time it – Oh NO! Sam just about had a heart attack when she saw the time; almost 9:30, and classes started at 9 o'clock sharp! She quickly leapt out of bed, changed into a clean uniform, and ran down the hallways to Ellen's class. She was running like a bat out of hell, and managed to get to her classroom seven minutes later.
"Nice to see you Miss. Winchester." Ellen said from her desk as one of her favourite kids came running through the door, but immediately silenced anyone who tried to laugh at the girl, seeing as how Ruby had told her that Sam had accidentally fallen asleep in the library late last night and she hadn't found her till about two in the morning to take her up to her dorm. In all the time she had been there, Sam had probably missed one out of a thousand classes, and been late for even less without a very good excuse.
"I'm so sorry El- I mean Professor Harvelle. I slept in and-" Sam rambled before Ellen raised a hand.
"First off, I've told everyone here, with the exception of Walker and Masters, you can call me Ellen. Secondly, Ruby told me that you may be late for class today. Thirdly, you can make this potion tonight after dinner, because Headmistress Lilith told me to tell you that when you woke up, you were to go to her office."
"Dare one ask why?"
"No clue, though I think we may have one or two new exchange students that she wants you to show around, as they've been sorted into your house and, quite frankly, as your housemates couldn't be bothered to wake you up, you're the most responsible person she could think of for the job." Sam then left the room and headed up to Headmistress Lilith's office.
"Headmistress?" Sam called out as she came in the room.
"Ah, Sam, I am very happy to see you! Though I am a little concerned over the time; you're usually one of the first up at 7:30. I hope you're feeling alright?"
"I'm fine Headmistress; I just didn't get much sleep and the others forgot to wake me up."
"Well, that wasn't very nice of them, was it? That probably means you haven't had breakfast; thankfully, our exchange students haven't had breakfast either so, once I introduce you all, I'll let you get something to eat. Will you come out please?" Sam was shocked when five men, looking a great deal like the stars of her, what must have been, her latest wet dream came to stand in front of her.
"Samantha Winchester, meet Matthew and Misha Davis, -" Two exceptionally tall, though not as tall as her, males with black hair and blue eyes came forward and shook her hand,
"Mark and Jensen Collins, -" Two rather tall men, almost as tall as her, both with blonde hair but the one with green eyes had a little bit of a darker shade than the one with blue eyes, again came forward and each shook her hand,
"And finally, Richard Walker." The shortest male in the room, the second shortest person in the room at all actually, having only a couple inches on Headmistress Lilith (A/N: Face it, Speight ain't that tall, and the woman who played adult Lilith did look a little tall), came forward and actually kissed the back of her hand.
"Good lord but you're a tall one! Get nosebleeds often?" Richard asked and the Davis brothers both face-palmed, the one introduced as Jensen laughed, and Mark slapped Richard upside the head.
"I'm afraid you must forgive Richard, Miss. Winchester; we've all known each other since childhood and I'm afraid Richard didn't have a brain even back then." Misha said as he removed his hand and Sam laughed a bit.
"That's alright; I'm used to people making comments on my height; though I must say, you're friend is the most polite so far. I must ask however, Headmistress, why have I been selected to guide them around? Surely it would be more ethical, as well as practical, if a male showed them around?"
"Well, when they were sorted into your house, I asked Azazel and he said you would be perfect for the job, and after today's little demonstration, I have to agree. That and your schedule happens to line up with theirs perfectly." Lilith said as she handed over the five schedules and, when Sam looked at them, she saw that they did indeed line up with her schedule; they even had the same breaks as her.
"Well, you have twenty minutes before charms, please use my office to have a late breakfast and get to know each other a little; I need to have a word with our Creatures teacher; he'd like permission to order some baby Gryphons for his sixth year class to look after. Apparently, a student is having such an easy time, he needs bigger and stronger animals just to keep her full attention on the class." Lilith said with a smirk at Sam, who blushed, as she left the room, and a large platter of club sandwiches appeared with a large pitcher of fruit punch. They all helped themselves, each trying to think of something to say to each other.
"So, uh, if you don't mind me asking, what school did you all attend before coming to the Academy?" Sam asked, and it was Matthew who answered
"Actually, we have all been home schooled practically our whole lives. However, our parents have only taught us most of the older spells; very few of the new ones. So, we managed to talk them into letting us come to a school of our choosing, and we chose the Academy." The room was in silence for another three minutes before Sam spoke again, not really understanding why she wanted to keep the conversation going; once they got the hang of the school and saw what a freak she was, they wouldn't come near her with a ten foot pole.
"What are your familiars? If you don't mind me asking that is?" Matthew again spoke up first,
"One of my familiars is a boar, with razor sharp tusks, making me think I should always keep an eye on her if I want to be able to sit down. My second is a cougar, and my third is a wolf."
"Wow, you sure got some fierce familiars Matthew." Thing they all have in common; leadership, Matthew is a leader Sam thought.
"Uh, Samantha? Why don't you call me Matt? It's just that, well, Matthew is so formal and, here at school, I'd like things to be a bit more casual than they were at home."
"Alright, then why don't you just call me Sam? Nobody calls me Samantha, not even my parents. Not even when they're cross with me really." Mark was the next to speak up.
"I hope that that invitation is extended to all of us as well? My first familiar is an adder, my second is a crow, and my third is a fox."
"That's cool; I love snakes and foxes. Well, I love animals in general really. Though, should I be worried over the fact that they are all cunning tricksters?" Thing in common; cunning animals, Mark is a manipulator. Rather large red flag there, better keep a good eye on him.
"I don't think you have to worry that much; I only trick those that deserve it." Mark said with a feral grin that Sam ignored and looked at the other three, and Richard was the next to speak,
"My first familiar is also a fox, then I have a raven and finally, a coyote."
"More tricksters, I believe that you and Mark must be very close friends." Thing in common; tricksters, pranksters, Richard obviously likes to play jokes, but where does he draw the line of safety? Where does he see enough and too much?
"My familiars include an elk, a horse, and a falcon." Misha said before Richard could respond, and Sam thought, Two of those are related to freedom and power, whilst the third is about speed and healing; Misha is someone who was trapped, broke free and now is quite powerful because of it. Finally, Jensen spoke,
"Mine are a wolverine, a badger, and last, but not least, a Tasmanian Devil." Main thing in common; protection, he's also a fighter and he lets people underestimate him so that when he strikes, they're left wondering how he did it and what the fucking hell did they miss.
"And tell us, what are your familiars, Sam?" Mark asked and Sam answered with
"An alligator, a nightmare, and an eagle."
"Very interesting; I don't think I've met many people that have a nightmare as a familiar." Jensen replied. Misha then spoke up again.
"I was just wondering, Sam, do you have a particular favourite class? A particular non-favourite?"
"Well, I'm good at runes, studying old or dead languages, Transfiguration I'm usually pretty good at, though I'm having a bit of trouble right now-"
"It's nice to hear to hear what you are good at, though Misha asked which classes you like." Mark said.
"Oh, well, I've never actually thought about it that way. I suppose I enjoy ward-making, our creatures class, they usually have interesting animals there, and Care of Magical and Dangerous Plants is always interesting."
"And what about your least favourite class?" Richard asked as they all stood up and got ready to leave.
"Study of Old/Dead languages." Sam said with little hesitance as they left.
"But you told us you were doing fairly well in it." Jensen said, obviously perplexed.
"Just because you're good at something, doesn't mean you like it."
"Then why take it?" Matt asked as they started walking down the hall to Charms.
"Because it was one of the few classes I knew for a fact neither-" Sam was interrupted as someone shoved into her.
"Watch where you're going stretch, wouldn't want you walking over any little bitty first years, would we?" Meg called out as she ran to Charms and one her flunkies made Sam drop her books.
"What the hell was all that about?" Mark asked as he and Misha bent down to help Sam pick up her books.
"As I was saying, I take Old and Dead Languages because it's one of the few classes I knew for a fact neither Masters or Walker would take. That was Masters; she's always going on about how tall I am, or the way I look, that sort of thing. Walker, a tall black boy, mocks my power, my intelligence, and my bloodlines." Sam explained, but before any of the males could say or do anything, a voice spoke up.
"And sadly, until Miss. Winchester finds her mate, the law would see any real retaliation against them, as assault." They looked and saw Azazel standing there. Sam blushed as she was again reminded by her teachers how hopeless the whole thing was. As she, Misha, Jensen and Richard all ducked in, Mark and Matt mouthed 'Details. Later.' Azazel nodded as the two went in.
"Now, everyone, we have five brand new students, and they all belong to Veneficus universa. Sam is their guide, though if any of them seek your assistance, I expect you to assist them. Now, uh, let's see, Mr. Milton, if you could move over three, thank you; Misha, you sit on Mr. Milton's right, Jensen, you sit next to him, Richard, Mr. McLeod's left, Matt, Mr. Milton's left, Mark, Mr. McLeod's right and Sam, you sit right in the middle. Now, our newest students are with some of our best." Of course, Azazel had had an ulterior motive to this seating arrangement; he knew Castiel would recognize his long dead brother's soul in Balthazar, and Gabriel, as well as Lucifer, and the original Crowley McLeod had been close allies in the past. He knew that it would be painful for Castiel to be near his brother and sister, and not have either recognize him, but that would only be until they could safely bring the memories to the foreground.
"Now, today, we are going to spend half our class reading our books about one particular charm, and spend the rest of class practising it." Everyone opened their books and started reading.
After class
"Well love, as always, it was a pleasure to see you embarrass Walkers and Masters in front of everyone, but sadly, Crowley and I have Techniques of Persuasion, and you and your new friends have a spare. Must be bloody awful to have a spare before lunch and not after like we do." Balthazar rambled as Crowley dragged them to their next class.
"They're a couple of odd fish aren't they?" Jensen asked and Sam just nodded as she led them outside so they could sit by the lake.
"Yes, truth be told, I avoided them my first and second year because of their way of getting people what they wanted for a price. They tried to sell me some stuff, but I never wanted anything from them when I couldn't be sure just where they had gotten it. Then, Adam, my younger brother, he made friends with Anna Milton, Balthazar's younger cousin, Balthazar by association, and through him, Crowley. I tried to ignore them, but if they're nothing if not stubborn buggers." Sam explained as they reached the lake. As she sat on the grass, she noticed they formed a circle around her.
"Fascinating. Tell me Sam, what exactly is the religious code around here?" Mark asked her.
"Well, in respect to our students who come from human families, we celebrate Halloween and Christmas, though if you prefer, you can also celebrate Samhain and Yule, and any other holiday that is pertinent to your religion. I myself celebrate Samhain as the Mexican holiday 'Day of the Dead', Yule, and Hanukah in case you were curious."
"Why both Yule and Hanukah?" Misha asked and Sam blushed.
"Well, as I said, in my first two years, I didn't have many friends, and I never really feel at home in my house, so I stay here over the holidays. Now, when a certain number of our Jewish population saw this, they felt rather sorry for me, and had me join in on their festival. We aren't friends in any sense of the word really, but if they have the time, they'll listen when I talk. Ever since those first two years, I have always celebrated Hanukah. We also have a World's Religions course, that I'm part of because of those very nice people, that is rather interesting."
"What about this dress code? I've seen the first three years in the uniforms they described but beyond that, quite a few seem more informal." Richard asked and Sam somehow had a feeling he would be the one to ask this question. Something about him said that he wouldn't like wearing a uniform for long.
"Well, after the first three years, the teachers allow you to wear more casual clothes so long as one, you still wear the tie that identifies your house, two, they are appropriate in length, and three, appropriate in content."
"Length and content?" Matt asked.
"Oh you know, a girl can't wear a skirt that's like an inch in length, she can't wear a shirt that shows off too much cleavage (or openly displays that she's not wearing a bra at all), a guy can't wear a shirt that promotes alcoholism or has any type of swearing on it. That's not to say you can't wear a, I believe Americans refer to them as novelty shirts, at all though. My cousin Ash, in America, he sent me one for my last birthday; it says something like 'Give Me My Tims, and No One Gets Hurt' or something like that. He got it while he was in Canada and Tim Hortons, or Tims as some refer to it, which is a coffee shop, is very big up there. He knew that, if I don't have coffee in the morning, then I can get rather cranky I'm afraid."
"I'll be sure to remember not to get between you and your coffee." Jensen said and Sam couldn't help but laugh. They talked for the rest of the spare before they went in for lunch and met Adam and Anna.
Later that night
"Right well, this is our living room, though some refer to it as a common room for some God forsaken reason, as the room is anything but common. I'll turn you over now to Andy Gallagher, a somewhat dependable person who will show you your dorm rooms and the showers. I've got to go to my own dorm. Good night." Sam said as she introduced the five new men to a boy who looked possibly a little drunk or even stoned.
"Yeah, right, follow me through the passage to the dorms then I'll show you the showers. By the way, just to tell you now; girls can't come into our dorms and we can't go into theirs. You want to do anything with your bird? Find an empty hallway or become an exhibitionist." And explained as he led them through a passage into a very nice dorm room and from there into the showers. As they were washing up, another boy spoke to them.
"Hey, newbies! I heard you got the Ice Queen as your tour guide? My sympathies man."
"Jake, just because she wouldn't go out with you, does not make Sam an Ice Queen! She wants her relationships to mean something, and the most meaningful thing she would get from you is you using a condom to make sure she doesn't get pregnant!" Andy shouted over the spray.
"Whatever; she's been here six years, and the only guy she ever went out with was that fag Crowley, and she turned him gay because she wouldn't put out!"
"You homophobic piece of shit! Crowley realized he was gay when he didn't get a boner from seeing her naked. I mean, with her body, wouldn't you realize your orientation may not be what you thought it was? And she wouldn't put out because not all girls are sluts these days! She wants it to mean something!"
"You know Gallagher, the way you go on about her, it's a surprise you haven't asked her out." Another boy with blonde hair called out.
"You know Max, she'd probably kill me within the first week because of my immaturity. No, a woman like that deserves a real man; not a screw up like me and not a man-whore, back-stabbing asswhole like Jake." The five warlocks went to sleep with many different thoughts and ideas about this strange new world they had become a part of, and all tried to think of ways to really get Sam's attention. Sam was loathe to admit that she almost hated going to bed that night though, or even splitting from them, simply because she wouldn't be able to have a real conversation with them again until morning.