I
It was a beautiful morning. The temperature, the nature, the scenery… everything was so pretty and perfect. It was a nice change, after the events of yesterday.
Needless to say, she kind of screwed up the previous school she was in. She and Serena were just minding their own bloody business, when a few kids got a little grabby. Of course, they had no idea that they've picked the wrong kids to mess with, because approximately two seconds later, they found themselves flying through the air, reeling from a mighty kick, and slamming against the opposite end of the hallway with six broken ribs.
Later that night, there were a few incredibly distressed parents calling the school. And needless to say, Ellis and Serena made themselves scarce.
The second the news reached the Shadowlocks, their clan, Ellis and Serena said their statements, accepting their punishments (nothing too bad, thank goodness. Just a quick two-day suspension) and hightailed out of the school district. Since they've been doing this for quite some time already, they picked a nice, new school, rented apartments, and got there. And Ellis was quite proud that they managed to get all of that done in just one night.
Before bed, Ellis and Serena popped open a bottle of champagne. Technically speaking, they were underage, but who cares?
The next morning, Ellis woke up when her alarm started beeping next to her ear. She peered out of the window, and smiled. It really was a beautiful morning. The sun shone lightly over the clouds, a cool wind toning the temperature down. A few sparrows flitted by, throwing little blobs of shadow over the pavement. Below her, she could hear families getting up, cooking breakfast, and packing bags.
Ellis crawled out of bed, slipping into jeans, a dark grey top, and a light cream-colored jacket. She stuffed a few books into her backpack, made sure everything was set, and made her way to the kitchen. Her kitchen was very simple: a stove, a cabinet, the fridge, and that's it. She opened the fridge, and grabbed a blood bag. Very casually. As long as no one happened to poke into the fridge or the trash, her little secret was safe.
Some vampires liked their blood at room-temperature. Others preferred to warm it up a bit. Some even made blood fondue or cocktails, or whatever. Honestly, Ellis actually really like blood cocktails, but she didn't have time to hit the liquor shop yet, so she stuck with sipping her blood chilled. She didn't like it warmed.
Ellis snipped the corner of the bag and deftly inserted a straw, sipping it. The metallic taste, tinged with a bit of plastic, filled her mouth, and she gulped it down. The best blood must be fresh, straight from the vein of some poor human. But the Shadowlocks banned it. And Ellis agreed. If the vampires continued to eat a human for every meal, they'd start hunting humans down to extinction, and where would they be? Blood bags were safer, but definitely less appetizing.
Ellis quickly finished her breakfast, popped a breath mint in her mouth (she made a mistake of forgetting once. When she asked what the homework was to the kid next to her, that kid promptly threw up after catching a whiff of her breath), slung on her backpack, and walked out.
Ellis strode over to the shade, where Sererna was waiting. They lived in different apartments, just to avoid suspicion.
"Hey!" Serena called, waving.
Ellis grinned, waving back.
Serena was small and pretty. She was at least half a head shorter than Ellis, and slightly plainer, but still very pretty to look at, with waist-length dark hair that glowed reddish in the sunlight, healthy pale skin, a light dash of freckles, and gorgeous brown eyes.
Together, they walked down the street, heading towards their new school.
"How'd you think this school will turn out?" Ellis asked.
Serena shrugged. "I have no idea. I flipped through their website last night again. Everything seems pretty nice."
Ellis nodded in agreement.
Soon, the school appeared before them. More and more students were there, chatting, flirting, cramming for tests, and finishing sandwiches or pop-tarts. It was so human. And despite everything, Ellis like it.
"Hey, are you guys new?" a rather handsome boy jogged over, grinning at them. "Do you need any help getting to know the school?"
Ellis opened her mouth to snap a reply, but she froze when she saw that the boy really, genuinely, did want to help, with no bad intentions in mind at all. He was literally glowing with honesty.
"It's all right, we'll find our way there. Thanks for the help!" Ellis said, smiling at him.
The boy looked a little disappointed, but backed off. Ellis shrugged.
And without further ado, they walked into their new life.
πρωίωςτοβράδυ
Dreyon sighed, lying back against the tree with his backpack as a cushion. In one hand he held a small novel, an extremely boring and practically useless book they had been studying in English Literature. However, due to the fact that they were about to have a quiz on the first five chapters of the book, Dreyon, who had never even bothered to read the book, was forced to begin studying. In the distance, the warning bell rang, sharp and urging. Sighing again, the dark haired boy rose gracefully and set off towards the building.
Just another long, boring day in his long, boring, immortal life.
The kids in his first class were crazy, boisterous and difficult to control. He often pitied the teacher, though sometimes watching that middle-aged woman squirm uncomfortably was quite amusing.
Literature was second period, so he had forty more minutes before the quiz. Dreyon began to rush, his clear, greenish-brown eyes skimming over the words while his mind tried to absorb everything his eyes managed to catch. Even so, there were still two more chapters…
Perhaps he should just skip the History lecture and focus on his Literature.
However, before he could make up his mind and block out the world, the teacher's nasal voice said loudly to be heard over the chatter of the students, "As some of you might have already discovered, we have a new student today."
Dreyon looked up, slightly surprised. He had been so intent on studying that he hadn't been noticing the situation around him. Now that he was concentrating, he easily pinpointed the new scent.
Even without looking, he knew it was a girl; a free, wild, courageous girl, judging by the fresh scent of spring and nature. There was pride, protection, and power in that girl, and also… age.
Her scent was incredibly, unbelievably old, one of the oldest he had ever gotten a whiff of.
And tainting everything red, was the smell of blood. And not just that, there were gray shadows and steeled, locked hearts.
Behind him was the scraping of a chair as the new student stood.
"What is your name?" the teacher inquired, smiling warmly and welcoming.
"Ellis Skye," the girl answered, her voice strong and steady. It was a kind voice, gentle yet powerful at the same time. Dreyon's eyes widened. And it was so familiar…
He glanced back to see the student, just beginning to sit down.
The first thing he saw was gold. Her hair was shoulder-length and slightly wavy, the color of pure gold. In one simple glance, he took in the feline grace of her movements, the attentiveness in those sharp bright green eyes.
There was a strange feeling in his chest. It felt similar to grief, but at the same time, it was different, unfamiliar than the usual ache of loss.
Ellis Skye.
Ellis, not Alice. Skye, not Goldsburn. Those eyes, bright and clear like a cat's, were green, not blue, and Alice is dead. Dead and gone.
Dreyon knew this; he knew all of this, but the feeling of déjà vu did not fade.
πρωίωςτοβράδυ
It was both amazing and frustrating how the new student- Ellis Skye, he reminded himself, was in so many of Dreyon's classes. It gave him an opportunity to observe her, but it was during Gym- the class before lunch- was his suspicions finally proven correct.
They were beginning a unit of Volleyball, and Ellis was proving herself to be an outstanding athlete. He was in the team opposite of hers, and had a nice view of her digging down to fling the ball up, or jumping high into the air to smash the ball onto the floor. It was during one of those perfect spikes of hers did he see it: a dark tattoo, winding around her thigh, mostly concealed by her sport's uniform. From far away, it looks like a thin line, but when Dreyon focused, he could see that it was made of words. A story, inked into her skin.
Shadowlocks.
Dreyon was tense. The Shadowlocks and the Nightwalkers had never gotten along well. They were two clans fighting for one space.
To the outside world, the Nightwalkers and Shadowlocks were two big companies filled with intellectuals and ran by prodigies. However, anyone inside the 'companies' would know that while some monsters are keeping the money rolling in, others are fighting- actually battling for land and food.
The fight wasn't fair in any way, in Dreyon's opinion. Nightwalkers were older and more traditional. They have been here for a much longer time than the Shadowlocks, who were a group of pacifists and would avoid drinking human blood in any way they could. The group of amateurs stole blood bags from hospitals, hunted animals for their tasteless blood. It made them weak, and stupid; it dulls their senses, unlike the exotic human blood that Nightwalkers survive on.
Dreyon knew why Shadowlocks wanted the area. The thick forest gave them plenty of prey, but the Nightwalkers had dominated for longer, and this little place was disorganized enough that if someone randomly went missing, not much people would hear about it, and panic would seldom ever rise.
For centuries they had battled, and so Dreyon, as the son of the 'prodigy' that ran one of the 'companies', had every right to feel defensive. So as the bell rang and the students began to pour out of the gym, Dreyon shifted in front of Ellis, turning his head slightly and barely his fangs, allowing a low growl to build up in his throat.
A threat; a warning.
Ellis Skye did not react, merely narrowing those cat-like green eyes, pressed her lips firmly together, and stalked off.
Frustration rose in Dreyon's chest. He shook it off, but understood immediately: that girl was trouble.
πρωίωςτοβράδυ
Dreyon met Ellis a few more times in the hallways, in classes, but they skillfully ignored each other.
After school, Dreyon headed towards his club. As he strolled down a hallway, his sharp ears picked up a sound. A song. Someone was in the music room, playing the piano.
It was a beautiful piece, and it wasn't something he recognized, not like Dreyon was a music expert or anything. But it lured him in, urging him to find the source of the music.
Dreyon arrived at the music room, where the hallway was vacant except for the sounds of the delicate notes.
He peeked through the door, then immediately withdrew, biting back a curse.
It was Ellis.
The new student was perched on the piano bench, long, pale fingers gracefully gliding over the black and white keys, producing a harmony of music.
Dreyon hated it.
He hated how she was so relaxed, how she was so graceful and beautiful, just like Alice. He hated how he thought for a moment that it was Alice that played the piano, the way she used to when she was healthy. He hated how they were so alike and how Alice was gone. Gone for a long, long time. And Ellis is still alive. Alive and thriving and immortal.
Suddenly, the music changed. It became tenser, more cautious.
Realizing that his presence had been noticed, Dreyon slipped away.
His mind was reeling, his motionless heart aching. Dreyon felt overwhelmed with memories and thoughts and possibilities and responsibilities, but he managed to make it into the safety of the damp forest did he finally collapse.
天：我们知道我们在故事里用了你的名字，我们也非常道歉，但是我们还没认识你之前已经把那名字选好了。现在把名字换了会感觉有一点奇怪，所以就只好这样。对不起啊！
And that was just a quick message. Thanks for reading!