The sense of magic in the air was undeniable. But that was probably because of all the little fairies flying around. Astrid had heard about these fairy assistants, but she'd never actually seen one. Of course, a place as prestigious as this was bound to have them.

She stepped in, a little dazed, and hoped desperately that the lipstick from earlier had been wiped off and that those napkins from earlier hadn't been as useless as they seemed.

In her awe, she accidentally bumped into a girl, who in turn said, "Hey!" and pushed her to the side. With an oof, she bumped into someone else, who scowled at her.

There were way too many of them for her liking.

It seemed like one of the girls was about to scold her when she was saved by the bell. All of the girls, with their books and their fairies, left one by one, into their classes.

Just as she was about to stop one of them and ask where in the name of Odin she was supposed to go, someone else bumped into her and knocked her down. And suddenly her face was wet.

It was a sweet little black dog, with his tongue out and looking very pleased with himself. Astrid laughed at his eagerness and sat up. "Hey, hey, calm down!"

Obediently, the dog sat, and pouted in apology. He nuzzled into her arm. "Aw, it's okay. You're a good boy...Toothless?" She read the solid golden collar. "Yeah. Er...good boy, Toothless."

"Astrid Hofferson, I presume?"

She looked up to see a petite woman wearing the most colorful dress staring down at her, and immediately she recognized Headmistress Toothiana and hastened to get up. "We don't usually find our lady royals sprawled on the floor."

"I-I'm sorry," she said, tripping on her own feet, for Toothless kept hopping around her. "It's just...he's very sweet!"

"Not usually," said Toothiana with a curious smile, "Normally he's quite shy. Go lie down, Toothless." The dog complied, but not before giving her hand another lick. He pranced off, his tail dancing behind him.

"Now, would you like me to show you to your locker?" the woman asked.

"Yes, please," Astrid responded, remembering her manners at the very last second; the dress Toothiana was wearing was very colorful and very distracting. The headmistress nodded and began to walk, beckoning for Astrid to follow.

So she did. And as they walked, Toothiana talked. She explained each place, the classes, the library, even the spa, which Astrid wasn't all that particularly eager to go to, but which she admitted, looked extremely luxurious. It was when they passed the art gallery when Astrid remembered her brother. "Gustav would love it here."

"Gustav?"

"My brother. He's a pretty good artist. He's the one who put me in, I mean, I never would've come," she admitted, and continued to admire the paintings.

"Astrid." She heard Toothiana talk in a slightly different voice - a hopeful one?, "Only two percent of the lottery girls actually make it to the Coronation. Do you think you could?"

She didn't know. So instead of confirming her outright, she merely turned around and said quietly, "I hope so. I mean, I'll sure try."

Toothiana smiled. "You'll find that all of our students hold themselves with utmost grace and -"

As if to mock her, two girls walked by, squealing loudly.

"We should have pom-poms!"

"Yes! And for the rally, we can dress up as candy!"

"I love that idea!"

The girls both gave a high-pitched scream and jumped up and down.

"Ladies!" Toothiana scolded sternly. "Calm yourselves, that is not proper princess behavior. Vanellope, Taffyta, I expect better of you two!"

The girls stalked off, and Astrid swore she heard the black-haired girl mumble, "Stinkbrain." She resisted the urge to laugh. No need to get expelled before her first day even started.

Toothiana sighed. "Anyway...this is the more modern part of the school, with the tech classes, as well as all the lockers." She stopped in front of one, and was about to speak, when a voice called out, "Astrid Hofferson! I'm looking for an Astrid Hofferson!"

And then, for the second time that day, something crashed into her, although this one was much smaller than Toothless. It was a fairy.

"I am so sorry!" she said, horrified, and looked down at the remains of the cupcake she'd been holding. She was wearing a blue and white little dress, and had green hair. She was a pretty little thing.

Obviously holding back laughter, Toothiana spoke up. "This is Stormfly, your personal fairy assistant, who should have been here about ten minutes ago, waiting for you." She gave the fairy a pointed look, and Stormfly laughed nervously. "I shall leave you in her...capable hands."

After Toothiana left, Stormfly turned her nervous look on Astrid, as though she might yell at her. "I really am sorry. I was just trying to give you the traditional welcome cupcake. It was buttercream," she added sorrowfully.

"Now someone just drops a pot roast on me, and I'll be a complete meal." She laughed. "It's fine, don't worry about it."

The fairy brightened. Astrid noted she was wearing a spike headband. "Well, let's let you see your locker!" She went to the locker in front of her and gave a tug. The locker fell open and Astrid gaped.

"Now here you've got pencil and paper and all your other supplies, all your uniforms and a few extra dresses for casual wear, fabulous purses, and let's not forget, emergency pumps!"

Astrid's mouth was still open. "This...is my locker?"

"Then over here, we've got your makeover things, lipstick" - Astrid caught the tube as it was flying out - "blush" - a close call, but she got that one too - "oh, I love this perfume!".

Too late.

She caught it, but squeezed it, right onto a passing girl, who coughed violently as the perfume consumed her. "Hey! Watch where you're squeezing that, please!"

"I'm sorry!" Astrid almost shouted, checking her voice. "It was an accident, I swear."

The girl gave her a good scowl, and Astrid realized who it was. "You're - you're -"

"Really mad," the girl finished, and this was bad, for no one wanted to make Princess Rapunzel mad. "How dare you!"

Another girl walked up to her and sniffed her. "Uh, Punz, there's such a thing as too much perfume."

"Anna!"

"What? Ooh, look, a cupcake!" And to the fascination of everyone watching, Anna picked up the buttercream cupcake and took a bite.

"You're the lottery girl, right?" Rapunzel asked.

"Yes, so you understand!"

She smiled in mock pity. "I understand that you're a big joke. Mother's told me that you lottery girls are just hopeless little dreamers who think they've got what it takes to be a lady royal, but end up flunking after one month."

At this, Astrid was offended. "Look, I don't care if you're a princess or a queen. You can't talk to me like that."

"Like what?" Rapunzel's eyes flashed dangerously. "You're the one who should watch your mouth. You're talking to someone who could easily have you deported in a few months. Anna! Let's go!"

Anna smiled apologetically before handing the cupcake back to Astrid and whispering, "It was delicious," and following her friend.

Astrid stared at their retreating backs with a scowl. Just who did she think she was? Well, yeah, she was the princess, but the perfume thing had been an accident, and frankly, if she hadn't caught it, it would have hit Rapunzel straight in the head. Ooh, maybe she shouldn't have caught it.

"So as you can see, everyone here is super nice," Stormfly babbled, and when Astrid gave her a disbelieving look, she went on, "Most of the time. Anyway, let's get you into your uniform! Locker, please extend curtain for a royal princess makeover!"

And now she was gaping again. This school was amazing. Even if some people looked a little full of themselves, the experience of this much pampering was brilliant, and for a second she worried it might to to her head.

"Well go on! Get gorgeous!" Stormfly squealed.

Astrid stepped in, and picked one of the uniform outfits, which she put on herself gently. She picked one of the shoes too, but stopped at the purses. That was a little too much.

And when Astrid stepped out, she felt, for the first time in her life, like a princess.

The fairy swooned. "So pretty! Now, let's get you your schedule and room."

She nodded in agreement, and prayed that her new roommates would not be as stuck up as the future princess of Berk.

Oh, she would show Rapunzel. She was far more than just a lottery girl.