Snippet #2063749

Margaret Wright

Margaret applied her makeup in front of the motel bathroom mirror. Turning the tap, she frowned as a strange groaning sound that rang through the room, and grew even more agitated as a single drop of water trilled out of the nozzle. Arcana had better have finer bathrooms then these, she thought angrily, wiping her hands on the pure white towels left out for her, leaving ugly black smudges. Changing into a simple black dress, Margaret grabbed her case and walked out the room, not looking back once. She just wanted to get all of this over with. The sooner they were all settled in, the better. She had never been very good with introductions. The Noctrem fire had startled her, just as it had everyone else, but Margaret had made up her mind not to linger on the past. The only way to go was forward, and forward was Arcana.

Taking a sip from the mug of tea she had made for herself, she stepped onto the bus, and before taking her seat just opposite Cain, sent a pointed look at the barely awake students sitting behind her. She knew it wasn’t her place to make a speech, but the look she sent clearly said one thing: This is it. There’s no backing out of this, so I expect all of you to make the most of it. Well, whatever ‘make the most of it’ means to you. Giving a small nod of greeting to Cain, Margaret turned her head to the window, watching the bleary landscape pass by. She didn’t bother turning her head during Cain’s speech. It wasn’t worth it. Cain hadn’t been the same since Noctrem fell. If the man had one emotional attachment, it was to his school. And now with it gone, and him having to work for his ‘archnemisis’, excuse the exaggeration, Margaret watched him slowly fall apart. They hardly spoke anymore. He stayed locked up in his room, majority of the time. And, in all truth, Margaret didn’t really care. He was a grown man, though he often didn’t act like one. She assumed he could take care of himself. All she knew was that he’d better toughen up by the time they reach Arcana, because she did not want to see Cain make a fool of himself, or Noctrem.

Finally arriving at the school, Margaret stepped off the bus, eyeing the school in front of her passively. Nothing showed off her emotions except the slight raise of her eyebrows, giving her a cynical air. She took her time to glance around the place, taking in the subtle changes that had happened since the last time she had come to visit, before walking inside after everyone else. A small mob had formed over what she assumed was the rooming list. From what she’d heard, students from the same school would be paired up. But, as she peered over the heads of the students, she realized that wasn’t the case. Margaret couldn’t but smile. Well, this is going to be very interesting. She wouldn’t have wanted the rooming choices to have gone any other way. Now, Noctrem students will be able to have an... influence over these impudent children. My job has gotten quite a bit easier, she thought, stepping back to lean one of the room walls.