A/N: Thank you for checking out this fanfic! Please note that somewhere around Anna and Hiccup I was half-asleep. On another note, I'll be posting Microsoft Word statistics each chapter, because I think it's cool and whatnot. They will always exclude A/Ns.
Prologue
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Statistics, According to Microsoft Word:
Words: 2254
Passive Sentences: 7%
Flesch Reading Ease: 76.2
Flesch - Kincaid Grade Level: 6.3
Microsoft Word Pages: ~6
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Elsa
It's a hat-and-scarf kind of morning, the sun still resting below the horizon as the children struggle to keep their eyes open in the early morning. They're travelling by charter bus, saving the students from the abnormally frigid weather. Most dismiss it as Canadian weather, being foreign to the country, but Elsa knows better. She knows it is her doing, and she is terrified of it. It shouldn't be cold enough for frost in September, but thanks to Elsa's power – or curse, as she calls it – it is.
She discovered her powers when she was a mere toddler, and it excited her. Her younger sister would beg for her to use them, and Elsa didn't hesitate to do so. They were the closest of sisters, they were never seen without each other, and they were often caught making snowmen in their family's living room.
Of course, that didn't last for long. Her parents soon grew worried by the immense power the young girl had, and desperately searched for the reason why she was so unique. She was expected to wear her gloves at all times, and very rarely did she leave the house.
Her power soon became something to control, and later something to fear. She convinced herself that she was a monster, began to believe that she was a monster and didn't deserve to have her family. She locked herself in her room for days at a time, and though she was filled with guilt, she told herself it was for the better.
Sometimes she wishes things could be different, no, not sometimes, all the time.
She wishes she could control it. She wishes that she didn't have to fear hurting others. She wishes her powers didn't exist.
"But you can't get everything you wish for," She often reminds herself.
Worry consumes Elsa as she thinks about what lies ahead. Her parents are sending her and Anna to D. W. D. Academy, a boarding school. She is reluctant to go, but she is also obedient, and went along with her father's plans. The thought of living at a school filled with students and teachers strikes fear into her heart, the thought of sharing a room with someone else even more so.
She soon finds her self drifting off to sleep, though she knows it won't be pleasant. Nightmares have plagued her for months on end now, and she often finds herself exhausted from avoiding sleep. She welcomes sleep with open arms now, in the hopes for just one pleasant dream.
Rapunzel
Rapunzel excitedly looks out her window, glad that they're inside the bus and not outside, where, through the dim morning light, frost coats the ground. She wonders how far the school is from the nearest town, they've been driving just below the speed limit for an hour now, and they didn't seem to be any closer. She didn't mind the travel, but the other students are getting restless, especially the girl sitting beside her, Merida.
Rapunzel tried to speak to the girl when they boarded the bus, but only spoke long enough to learn her name before Merida made it clear that she doesn't want to speak with her. Rapunzel noticed Merida's thick Scottish accent and wanted to ask her about it, but decided to leave her be for the rest of the bus ride.
Instead, she spends the trip looking out the window occasionally, but mostly examining the pale blonde hair of the girl in front of her. Eventually, she takes her notebook out, sketching what she could see of the girl. Rapunzel can see from the crack between the window and the seat that she's drifting off, her head slowly making its way to lean against the window.
"Y'know, she prob'ly doesn't appreciate being drawn without 'er permission," Merida remarks loudly, waking up the girl and startling Rapunzel, causing her pencil to fall to the floor, quickly rolling away towards the back of the bus.
The girl doesn't seem to realize Merida was talking about her, and goes back to sleep. Merida jabs Rapunzel with her elbow, "Are ya goin' to ask or what?" She says, annoyance in her voice.
"Um, no?" She says, unsure of what to say as she tries to put her notebook away quietly, already blushing with embarrassment.
"Ugh, I can tell you 'ave no backbone!" She loudly remarks as she leans back in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest while blowing a lock of her wild, red hair out of her face.
"Sorry?" Rapunzel tries to apologize, though it comes out as a question.
"Don't apologize fer it! That just makes it worse!" She yells, causing Rapunzel to shrink back in her seat. By now she has the attention of the bus, and she seems to realize she's yelling. She mutters out an apology, her face flushing with embarrassment.
Rapunzel tries to appear more confident when she's around her.
Merida
Merida looks around the bus, realizing that the most of the other students were staring. She hadn't meant to yell at the girl, Rapunzel, she thinks. She just can't stand shy people, and Rapunzel came off to her as one.
Sheepishly, she apologizes to Rapunzel.
She leans her head back, suddenly overwhelmingly tired. It didn't take long before she was met with pleasant dreams.
Anna
Whispers of the red-headed girl spreads throughout the bus, and Anna can't help but feel bad for her. The girl only lost her temper, and she must be tired, she's sleeping right now, after all.
Anna sits at the very back of the bus, a tall boy wearing a suit and a top hat next to her. She would have loved the window seat, but he claimed it before her. She doesn't know his name, and would ask if he wasn't so intimidating. She started humming a tune earlier, and she was met with a glare from him. Since then, she's been bored out of her mind. That is, until the red-headed girl yelled at the girl with long, blonde hair.
Luckily, the girl calmed down immediately afterwards.
Anna looks down at her shoes, the runners anyone would think are brand new, but in reality, Anna's owned them for two years. She wonders if she'll hit a growth spurt soon, after all, she's thirteen and she's still wearing shoes from when she was eleven.
She notices a pencil on the floor and picks it up. It's an artist's pencil, and she notices a piece of tape wrapped around it, with a name written with a black pen. It's an odd name: Rapunzel.
Anna shrugs and pockets it, knowing she'll find the owner eventually. She looks ahead at the other students, and only notices one student with a sketchbook.
He looks around fifteen, and he wore a brown fur vest. Anna can't see what he's drawing, but he seems completely absorbed by it. As strange as the names sounds, Anna can tell the name is feminine, and concludes that it can't be him.
Hiccup
Hiccup had been absentmindedly doodling in his sketchbook for the last ten minutes before he realized what he was drawing. It was a two-headed dragon, the second dragon he's drawn since the night before. It's nagging at him, he has no particular interest in dragons, and yet, somehow, he ends up drawing them when he isn't paying attention. It's been happening for a week now, each time he drew a different dragon, and somehow he knew exactly how fast, how strong, how powerful, and how smart they are.
He would have mentioned it to his father, but he didn't want to add on to the list of things attributing to his nerd of a son that he's disappointed of. His mother was an entirely different story.
He decides to add more details to the dragon, and barely notices when the red-headed girl on the other side of the aisle yells at the girl next to her. Just minutes afterwards, he finishes the dragon and takes a moment to admire his work. He notices the boy sitting beside him stare at his drawing, and he snaps his notebook shut, turning away and staring out the window.
The bus slows down as it passes a tall fence with barbed wire. Suddenly, going to D. W. D. Academy isn't so desirable, but Hiccup dismisses the fence as something to keep animals out.
After fifteen more minutes, they pass through a tall wall, at least twelve feet tall, and Hiccup can't help but wonder what that's for. The fence is excusable, but why would the school need a wall as well? He pushes the thought away and eagerly looks ahead, sure that they will arrive at the school in no time.
Astrid
Astrid sits up in her seat in anticipation, they had already passed through a fence and a wall, she's sure they'll arrive soon.
She's eager to arrive, the girl behind her started yelling earlier and she can tell the other students are anxious. Astrid herself is struggling not to lose her patience.
Suddenly, a large castle comes into view, and Astrid can't help but be reminded of the school in X-Men.
"We're going to be living in there?" Astrid asks incredulously.
The other students look at the castle with awe, some excited at the prospect of living in a castle.
The driver pulls up to the castle, announcing to everyone that they're free to get off. Astrid is the first, running up to the doors with amazement in her eyes. Half of the students have exited the bus when she comes to a sudden realization.
"Wait, isn't anyone going to come with us inside?" She asks the driver, but she is only met with a shrug.
"If there was they would have boarded the bus," He says simply as the last student walks off the bus. "Good luck!" He closes the door, and the compartments along the side of the bus open, revealing their luggage.
Everyone races to retrieve their belongings, and the moment everyone does, the doors slam shut, and the driver races out of the school grounds.
Suddenly, Astrid feels completely and utterly stranded, with twenty-five other students and their luggage.
Flynn
If there is one thing Flynn wasn't expecting about the school, it was this.
Everyone kind of just stands there for awhile, a little dazed and confused as the bus drives out of sight.
"Well, let's get to it!" Flynn yells, clapping his hands together and snapping everyone back to reality. He picks up his suitcase and carries it to the front door, absolutely no hesitation as he swings it open.
He admits, what he sees shocks him.
A robot stands before them, holding a container full of books. It yells out a "Wall-E!" in everyone's silence. Flynn, refusing to become dazed, grabs one of the books from the robot and soon realizes that it is a rulebook.
He doesn't bother to go through it, knowing he would break them all anyways, and walks down the hallway, which doesn't look anything like the outside. It's actually quite the opposite.
Theresa
Theresa is awestruck by the school. On the outside, it's a classic castle, what any little kid would imagine. On the inside, it's the polar opposite. The walls are painted with contrasting colours and sharp edges, and Theresa almost doesn't notice that all the corners are rounded, in anticipation of rambunctious teens.
She fiddles with the edges of her black, fingerless gloves, the only thing stopping the other students from seeing the feathers that climb upwards from her wrist. She's long since gotten used to wearing the gloves; it almost feels unnatural to not wear them.
She waits for someone to make the next move, and expects it to be the tall boy with brown hair from before, but she's surprised to see it be the red-headed girl.
"Oh, thank God the inside doesn't look like a castle too!" She shouts, barely noticing the robot as she walks past it. The robot, however, seems determined to give everyone the books and races in front of her, holding the blue plastic container above his head. She sighs as she grabs a book, pushing past the robot. "Hello?" She calls out to anyone else who might be in the school, but is instead met with an echo.
"Um, guys?" A girl with pale blonde hair in a tight bun says, her gloved hands flipping through the pages of the book. She says something, but her voice is drowned out as the others start to chatter, most of them confused by the school that seems to be empty.
"Hey!" Theresa suddenly finds herself yelling, and everyone gradually quiets down. "Let the girl speak!" She gestures to the pale blonde, who gives a nod of thanks.
"It says here," She points at a page in the book, as if everyone could see what she was pointing at. "That there are no teachers or staff members…" She trails off, looking up from the book to see everyone's reaction.
"But, every school needs teachers!" A girl with ginger hair exclaims, not any less confused than the other kids.
"Just read the book, Anna. It says it right here," She seems to know the girl, and calmly explains it to her. "It explains everything we need to know here,"
Theresa grabs a book from the robot and quickly skims through the book. She's right, it explains everything there.
"It looks like we're on our own," The girl says grimly.
A/N: Bonjour! So I was going to have all the POVs of the main characters (The Originals, anyway), but then I realized I would have to write a lot of action on that bus, or have very short POVs. I decided to only include a few, if you can call it that.
Now, there was a reason I mentioned X-Men when they saw the castle. So, about a week ago, when I was planning this, I thought "Hey, why not toss the kids in a castle?". And so I went to Wikipedia for a list of castles in Canada (Because I'm Canadian, deal with it) and found a castle in British Columbia. Now, being British Columbian, I though, "Hey, why not?" and found Hatley Castle, or whatever it's official name is. Without realizing it, I picked the castle that is used in X-Men. If the internet can be trusted, that is. And, I'm going to say this right now, this story might seem a little bit like X-Men (What with powers and 'special' kids and the use of the word 'mutant'), but this is completely unintentional. And now I've decided to poke fun at it and make references to X-Men throughout the story.
The school is located somewhere around Kitimat (Which is in British Columbia, Canada. Just look it up with your preferred search engine - which I sincerely hope isn't Bing.), and I'm using that region for climate and whatever, although that isn't where the actual castle is located.
And to clarify, I wanted to include Sandy's POV, but ran out of chapter. If that makes sense. Sandy used his sand to put Merida to sleep to help ease tensions.
Hiccstrid VS Merricup, so far:
Hiccstrid is in the lead with one vote, meanwhile Merricup is at zero!