The sunlight was streaming in through the open curtains of Leonardo's bedroom, the rays dancing across the skin of both himself, and the beautiful, bare woman next to him. He had been awake for some time now on this Monday morning, his hand delicately moving through Amy's long brown locks, watching her sleep so peacefully beside him. The male hadn't had a good night sleep - the anticipation of the next day keeping him up throughout most of the night. Today was the day that the Noctrem students were finally coming into the school, moving in, to live and study in the same place as his beloved Arcana students. Obviously, the thought had worried him, mixing both good and bad student in his school, but that was what he had to do - he couldn't just leave the Noctrem students in that motel.

A soft sigh escaped the male's lips as he laid there, still aimlessly running his fingers through Amy's hair, soothing himself. Without the beautiful young brunette next to him, Leo had no idea how he would be feeling right now. The sweet girl had kept him sane, kept him calm throughout the transition, and after last night, had relaxed him completely. He was so lucky to have her in his life as more than just a friend any more, than he had taken that extra step forward, and had claimed her as his own. Their last week together had been incredible; holding her in his arms, kissing her, making love to her. They had decided to keep their relationship secret, if only just for now. Leo had created rules three hundred years ago, stating that employees shouldn't be dating, and yet, here he was, breaking his own rules. If Cain ever found out... he shook his head slightly, grimacing at the idea of his "enemy" finding out that he was breaking his rules. One person already knew about it, Corentine Quellen, and that was as many people as he wanted involved.

Leo turned his head to the side, looking at his clock as he lay there. The time was 7:00 AM, the time he usually got up to get himself ready for work. Slowly, the male who had been leaning up on his elbow, bent his head down, placing a delicate kiss on the lips of his stunning girlfriend. "Amy..." He whispered softly, his lips still brushing against hers as he spoke, "you need to wake up, baby."

---

Emily Marks, a receptionist who had worked in the main office for a number of years, had been entrusted with the task of putting up the roommate list. At 7:00 AM on the dot, she had left her station, the piece of paper in her hand, and she had pinned the list to the wall, just past the main entrance to the school. An error had occurred that she had been unaware until yesterday, and by then, it had been too late to change. The Noctrem students were going to be roomed with an Arcana student, someone to help them settle in, an error that Leo hadn't liked one little bit. In fact, he had fired the head receptionist, Hannah, giving Emily a promotion in the process. Any moment now, the students from the Noctrem School would be entering Arcana Academy, no longer seeing it as just a place of study, but now, also their new home. Upon the list, is the roommate pairings, and a map of the entire school.

Cor had woken up with a minor headache. Just a tiny one. After yesterday she’d needed alcohol and she might have stolen some of Drake’s – the good stuff, of course. And so… now she was being punished. Served her right, she supposed. Things were just… one big mess. Right now she was on the bus with the others, dressed in this. After her shower at the motel she’d grabbed a shower before Drake had even woken from his slumber; she’d been sharing a room with him. Not because they couldn’t have had separate rooms, but because after the fire, Cor had sort of needed to be around someone with a level head, and who was more levelheaded than Drake in emotional situations? After getting ready, for once straightening her hair and all, Cor had grabbed her two suitcases and gone to fetch Erin. Together they’d gone to the bus waiting for them as every other morning. Except this one was bigger. Big enough to fit all of their baggage. Right now it was 7:30 AM and she was half asleep with her head on Erin’s shoulder. Her best friend was of course seated beside her and Cor wouldn’t have it any other way. Well… maybe except… if, you know… Jay could… oh no, no no no. No thinking about Jay. Off limits.

The young blonde’s eyes snapped open the second the bus stopped and it was announced over the speakers that they had arrived. She got up, rolling her shoulder before she took Erin’s hand. “C’mon, Blondie.” She said, “we need to go have lots of fun in our amazing new home.” She laced her tone with feigned eagerness, overdoing it so much that even people who didn’t know her would recognize it as deliberately fake. Honestly she wasn’t really pleased in the least, but she didn’t want to go back to Harrogate either. So there was that. Besides, all of her friends were here, and she supposed Jay’s presence at Arcana made things bearable. Somewhat. She didn’t let go of Erin’s hand until the girl was out of her seat and then Cor walked out of the bus, taking her luggage from the driver who was in the process of getting all of their belongings out of the bus for them. She waited for Erin to get hers before she moved again, this time heading for the Academy. A place she’d been many times over the last month; a place where she’d more or less had to deal with a lot of shit she hadn’t had to before. Punishment for instance. Cain always let her get away with most of her shit. Marinos didn’t. Or… at least he didn’t used to, until she’d caught him and Roerig in a preeetty compromising situation about a week ago. Now she had free reign for 4 months. Not bad.

She didn’t really pay much attention to the other students. She didn’t care much. She was more focused on who she’d have to live with. She had no idea, but she couldn’t imagine Marinos pairing her up with any of his precious little angel babies, for instance. So they were probably rooming with someone from their own schools. It didn’t make sense not to do it like that. Cor entered the reception are, glancing at Erin. “Something tells me we’re going to regret this in the end, you know.” She shook her head and looked around her. She knew there would be a list hanging here somewhere with rooms and room-numbers and all that bullshit. Ah, there it was, off to the side. Both her suitcases rolled behind her as she made her way over, looking over the list. Her eyes widened slowly. “Uh… Erin, I think you need to see this,” she said, indicating the list. “They’ve mixed us. What kind of bullshit it that? I swear, sometimes they’re just too fucking stupid.” She wasn’t angry, or annoyed, because she’d been lucky enough with L. She was alright with rooming with L. Better than most others. Then she frowned. “Loralei?” She repeated off of the list, shooting Erin a look. “You’re rooming with gypsy girl? Fuck.” Her expression went from pity of her best friend to amusement when she spotted two other names. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” she said, already laughing. “Jay and Sky? That’s just a disaster waiting to happen.” And it really was. Jay had already said that he wanted to beat up every guy she’d ever slept with, and she knew Sky hated Jay in turn. That room was going to be a war-zone.

---

The dream was beautiful; beautiful and peaceful. Just… Leo and her alone in the most beautiful meadow filled with violet flowers, the sun setting in the horizon. She couldn’t remember what they were doing there or how they’d ended up in this place. Only the happiness and tranquility of that perfect moment, until the tress on the far side began moving, becoming students and fellow teachers, walking towards them. That’s when Leo let go and pushed her away, immediately resuming his professional eyes. The ones that didn’t belong to her Leo. Eyes that shut everyone safe for a select few, out of his heart. That’s when he said her name, his soft, masculine voice emanating, but it felt weird… like it didn’t belong in a dream, then her eyes fluttered open at the contact of his lips, the soft static and the touch jolting her awake. She smiled sleepily against his lips as he whispered. She was glad he’d woken her up before her dream turned into even more of a nightmare.

She kissed him softly once more before letting his lips move away even just a little, “mmmmorning” she murmured, stretching with a soft purr before smiling more properly as the memories of their night together resurfaced and then turned around to make him lay on his back, leaning over him. She let her hands rest on his chest as she raised herself a little, not caring one bit that she was completely naked. Then, as she looked him over, she tsk’ed and shook her head, “you haven’t slept all night, have you?” She hadn’t slept much herself. Honestly she’d only had maybe two or three hours of sleep at this point, if she was lucky. They’d had sex for the first time. Not first time in the virginal sense, but she’d been holding back since that night where Cor had found them; her lying on her desk, Leo’s head and fingers between her legs. That had just been… very unfortunate, to say the least. And extremely embarrassing. She’d also just been a little insecure. How could anyone measure up in the bedroom toa guy who had been having sex for the last odd 2500 years? He hadn’t seemed unsatisfied, though, so she was feeling quite relieved.

Amy leaned down to kiss Leo’s perfect lips before smiling softly and a tad thoughtfully at him, then biting down on her lip as the smile disappeared, her dream coming back to her and she sighed, unsure of how Leo was going to react now. They hadn’t really talked about their relationship’s status as such, but after the dream, Amy was feeling even more certain that they needed to let the cat out of the bag as such. She knew he didn’t want to, but she didn’t want to be stuck in a secret relationship for whoever knew how long. “Baby?” She began, kissing his jaw softly before looking up at him again, her violet eyes worried; worried about his reaction and how this was going to go down. She was ready to take an argument if that was what they needed, “when are we going to tell people? I mean… we can’t keep this a secret forever… right? And… people are going to find out anyway. It’s just a matter of time.”

Noctrem’s former headmaster was about as keen on early mornings as most of his students. Less so, perhaps. If he hadn’t been billeting himself at the same motel as the kids, there wouldn’t have been a shot in Hell of him getting aboard the coach bus he’d hired to transport them to Arcana. He’d probably have still been in his apartment, asleep, if that were the case. He would have liked to have slept through the entire day, if he could have. Maybe the entire year. Maybe the rest of his life. Cain, he reminded himself, We’ve been over this. What you’re describing is basically suicide.

He had been in rare form for the days leading up to the move. Yes, on a rational, adult level he understood that this was a good thing. That in the most technical sense, Leo was doing him a solid allowing his misfits and miscreants to take up semi-permanent (Oh Gods he hoped it was only semi-permanent) residence at his ostentatious school. Until Noctrem was rebuilt, it was a much better option than any of the others that they’d manage to come up with, even if it was slowly withering his soul away. He hated the idea of owing Leonardo Marinos anything other than a beatdown that was hundreds of years behind schedule. He was repulsed by not having utter control over the school, never mind his classroom.

He’d taken the front, rightmost seat of the bus. A pair of dark aviators hid his bloodshot eyes from the students as they clambered aboard, and he was sipping often from a metallic thermos of… let’s call it coffee. It was at least half coffee, so, that would work. His cheeks were lined with salt-and-pepper stubble, and his hair was getting long. Too long. He needed to get it cut, he noted, as he ran a hand through it. When the bus finally rolled to a stop in front of Arcana, he rose solemnly and turned to address his students.

The pause that he waited was significant enough that they might have been expecting some sort of big speech, if they weren’t all aware of his undying hatred for big speeches. Instead, he took a gulp from his “coffee” and, with his sunglasses still in place, nodded. ”Give ‘em Hell, kids. It’s your school now too.” He swung around and slunk off the bus, lighting a cigarette the instant he crossed the threshold. Many of the students would be able to get ahead of him, since he was walking slowly and chainsmoking. He left a breadcrumb trail of three crumpled cigarette butts to lead the slower ones to the entrance doors, having used the first to light the second and the second to light the third. Reeking of smoke, he made his way in, not bothering to remove his sunglasses once he was inside.

He saw a few kids already gathered around the list and ambled up himself, perverse curiosity drawing him to see what sort of arrangements Leo’s lackwits had made. When he laid eyes on it, he did finally remove his glasses, just to make sure he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. He let out a bark of laughter. ”Oh, this is fucking priceless.” His morning grumpiness and general surliness had been replaced by a Christmas morning grin. He dragged out his phone, stabbing his finger at the screen and starting a text message, only using one hand (which isn’t to say he was good at it- nope, it was laughably clumsy). He then used the option to attach a picture that Jade had shown him just after showing him how to download stupid games, and took several seconds to snap a photo that had the list legibly in frame. He hit send.

A second or so later, Leonardo Marinos would receive the following text message:

u r such a tool.
<Insert Picture of List Here>

Looking extremely self-satisfied, Cain stowed his phone, laughing again in his harsh, guttural way. He took another long gulp of his spiked coffee, not to give him strength this time, but in celebration. This, he decided, might actually be interesting. Give ‘em Hell indeed. Smirking, he sauntered off to find some breakfast.

---

”Wouldn’t it be like… totally awesome if we end up roommates? I mean, like, how cool would that be, haha?”

Colby grinned toothily over at Landon as they made their way down the hallway. The speedster brimmed over with excitement even on the most everyday sort of day, but this was something special. Something big. Nothing so big had happened since the Noctrem kids showed up in the first place after their school burned down. He’d always been an early riser (at least, if he hadn’t partied the night before), and was already bright-eyed and alert, ready to carpe the diem.

He’d turned up at his best buddies room as planned, dressed in a pair of clean jeans and a pristine white polo shirt, and simply let himself in. Modesty was fairly pointless between the two of them, so he’d dragged the covers off of Landon and chattered away a mile a minute while the other boy got ready. He’d speculated wildly about who they might have wound up rooming with. As far as they knew, Arcana students would be boarding together, and so he’d been crossing his fingers in hopes of landing Landon as his roomie. Easier quickies aside, he couldn’t imagine anyone else at the school he would rather have shared space with. They got along so well that there wouldn’t be any problems.

”I guess Izzy wouldn’t be so bad either,” he proclaimed with a wicked grin. Colby also harbored a secret, stupid little hope that, somehow, a clerical error or shortage of beds would result in him sharing a room with their headmaster. He’d related as much to Landon, in his room, and easily dodged the pillow that his friend had chucked at his face. ”I’d totally dig rooming with Izzy. Haha, Izzy is so cute.” Colby’s thoughts often tended to emerge from his mouth in a rapid stream-of-consciousness.

”I just hope it isn’t Jaysin. He’d probably like, pin me down and strangle me in my sleep.” Judging by the way Colby’s eyes glazed over, he was very likely imagining a few of Jaysin pinning him down and doing something else entirely. He shook his head, so quickly that it seemed a flesh-and-hair colored blur, then delved into his pocket for one of his high-protein breakfast bars. He usually put down about three of them every morning in addition to breakfast in order to keep his infernally fast metabolism sated. On his lazy days he ended up burning through 10,000 calories; most days, it was more in the vicinity of 15,000.

He bit into the bar, still walking along with Landon, who was no doubt fighting to get a word in edgewise, like always. Colby eyed Cain Montgomery suspiciously as the man headed past them, chewing his energy bar laboriously. When they were about thirty feet away, though, with Noctrem students flocking around the announcement, he grinned a chocolate stained smile at Landon and then… vanished. It seemed that way at least. If it weren’t for the gust that kicked up behind him, he might as well have. He was only gone for about two seconds. He blurred into the midst of the Noctrem kids, scanned the list until he found his name, frowned, took another bite of his breakfast bar, and then blurred back over to Landon to resume their walk at a more normal pace.

”Who the fuck is Drakethrean?” He asked, his brow knit up in not-at-all unfamiliar confusion. ”Did we get a new kid? I wonder if he’s hot, haha.” How the Hell was he supposed to remember a weird-ass name like that? He’d practically already forgotten it. He’d also forgotten, in typical self-absorbed fashion, to see who Landon was rooming with. Of course, he knew who Drake was. If the stupid paper had just said that, he would only have been confused by the fact that he was from Noctrem. Not recognizing his full name only compounded his lack of comprehension.

As he and Landon closed in on the group of students, he began looking for Sky. He finished unwrapping his energy bar and then ate it at super-speed, chewing and swallowing so quickly that the thing basically disappeared. He ran his tongue along his teeth in similar fashion to clean them off, then turned a bright smile on Landon. ”I’m not all like, chocolate mouth, right?” He glanced away, seeking out his best friend from Noctrem once more. His hair was very recognizable; the best hair in the school, really, so Colby looked for that. Colby had been jealous of Sky’s hair since day one. Even the most rigorous styling products didn’t hold up to moving at just shy of 400 M.P.H., so Colby was forced to wear his own hair short. Such a drag.

The taste of alcohol from the night before lingered on Addison's lips as she stretched a bit, seeing that Cor was already awake. The night before, the girls had drank a bit -- of course Drake's stuff, hopefully he wouldn't mind. Or notice. She had woken up and showered, got dressed, did her hair, make up and everything else along with it. Leaving Noctrem was like leaving home, it gave Addison this empty feeling inside. Although she loved new adventures, she also loved having a stable thing in her life. Noctrem had become one of those to her, and ever since the fire her safety zone was gone. Of course, the fire had hit everyone hard, just in different aspects, Cain was the most devastated, because that was his pride and joy. Thoughts buzzed through her head, as she mindlessly went through some old magazines she'd found in the motel lobby that morning.

Oprah's shining face was on the cover of one of them...Addison glared a bit, shaking her head, opening up to the article about Oprah's new escapade of Godliness. Oprah was helping a young couple who came from nothing, had a kid and needed money big time. She was showing them their new car, a totally new wardrobe, and a brand new house. She probably bought them the finest yacht along with all that and gave them 1,000 dollars to spare.

Addi's theories? Oprah is probably a God sent down to earth... think about it, the lady’s got everything. She’s got enough money to go build hover crafts, pay the world’s greatest scientist to make a replica of her so she could live on forever, all while we are under her rule. Not only did she have the money goin’ for her, but she had this God-given gift to take the most depressed man who has had all his dreams shattered and probably cure him with her phlegm. She was Oprah. She was perfect in the people’s eye because she came from nothing and worked her way up to the top and still admitted she had some problems.

Of course, Addi was sure Oprah wouldn't approve of using alcohol, drugs, or other harmful substances in order to cope with living circumstances. She would most likely suggest something like grabbing a pint of ice cream, and powering through it with your gal-pals...

“Kudos, Oprah.” She mumbled, throwing down the magazines on the empty seat next to her.

The girl's train of thought was suddenly lost when she felt the bus slowing down. Her eyes flickered up as she heard the bus come to a screeching halt in front of the glorified Arcana Academy. Arcana seemed nice from the pictures, and it was a bit better in person than she'd expected. Lots of forestry around the place, good places to hide and such.

With a stretch and a sigh, she stood up, following Cor and Erin off the bus, her luggage dragging behind her. She stopped outside, leaning against the wall and fumbled through her purse. She takes out a pack of cigarettes and puts it in her mouth.

"Where did that fucking lighter go?" She mutters, fishing through her purse and her fingers grasp around her white lighter. Cupping one hand over the cigarette, she flicks the lighter, lighting it and taking a long drag. It's not that Addison was really craving one, it was just stress smoking. What she was dreading the most wasn't the people or anything... But the roommate schedule. Roommates are everything at boarding schools. They're who you're living with for the rest of the year. Inhaling a long drag she slowly exhales, blowing a few smoke rings here and there, watching Cain stumble off the bus, and he took a drink of his "morning coffee". Which normally consisted of a whole lot of alcohol and a drop of coffee.

Addison wasn't one for rushing, she knew she would get things done on her own time. She listened to Cor complain, and Cain say, ”Give ‘em Hell, kids. It’s your school now too.”

She watched the end of her cigarette burn, blandly staring ahead.

"Hell doesn't even cover what we're bringing to this school." She says flatly, a devious smirk flickers onto her face as she flicks the ashes from her cigarette.

"Oof!"

Morgan sat upright. She had been dreaming about performing onstage in front of millions of people when she had been woken abruptly by the floor. Her alarm clock showed 06:59. She stood up and yawned. She dragged herself into the shower and began to wonder who her roommate would be. Hopefully not one of the bitches from Noctrem. She refused to room with one of them. And she refused to leave her room. So if her roommate had to sleep on the roof, so be it. She shut off the water. A beeping sound could be heard coming from her room. She wrapped herself in a towel and ran out to see what it was. Her alarm was chirping happily. She still wasn't sure how to turn it off, so she simply slapped it a few times until it stopped beeping. She then went to her closet and assembled an outfit.. She pulled it on and went to her mirror. Her fingers played over the various pots and items on her dressing table before resting on her eyeliner and mascara. She lined her eyes and put on a coat of mascara. She looked around her room. One side of it, the side she hadn't lived in, was neat and tidy, untouched since the first day of term. But her side was a mess. She briefly considered cleaning it up. She instead decided just to leave all the clothes into the laundry basket. It made her room look considerably tidier, and she grinned. Job done.

She dragged a brush through her hair before leaving the room and heading downstairs. Various students were heading down, mainly to see who their roommate would be. The first Noctrem students had arrived and were checking out their roommates. Morgan resisted the temptation to run and instead chose to walk over to the listing. Her eyes scanned down the list until they found her name. She grinned. She was rooming with Jess Coleman, one of the nicer Noctrem girls. She checked out some of the other listings. Zac was rooming with Theodore McCaffery. The debates would be flying in that room anyway.

She waited outside for Jess and watched as the Noctrem students approached. Some she smiled at, others she glared at. The Noctrem students had only been at Arcana for a month, but it had been ample time to develop friendships and to become enemies, even among the teachers. Personally, she didn't have anything against the Noctrem teachers. They were only doing their job, after all. The school they taught at shouldn't matter, but it did for some students. They had the impression that all Arcana students were good, sweet little angels that never stayed up past their bedtime. But Morgan had been at a party a few nights ago, and... Well, the Noctrem students would soon be cured of that assumption. Morgan's drink had been spiked, and she had gotten a little tipsy. She had been giggling at every single little thing somebody said. But that was minor compared to some people. At least she had been able to walk to bed and had been able to attend first class the next morning.

Zac Barnes

The drum solo from Phil Collins' "In The Air Tonight" filled the room. Zac was immediately awake and alert. Mo had bought him that alarm clock for his last birthday as a joke, but it was actually pretty effective. Zac swung his legs out of bed and ran his hands through his hair as he yawned. He stood up and went into the bathroom. He showered and went back into the main room. As he came out of the bathroom, the door slammed behind him, caught by a breeze from the open window.

"Give me the stuff, Jon!" "I told you already, I don't have it!" "GIVE ME THE FUCKING STUFF!"

Zac walked in at possibly the worst moment. The man who was shouting at his father grinned at him. "Hello, Zac." He grabbed his arm and slammed the door behind him. He dragged him over and pointed a gun at his head. "Give me the stuff." He said quietly. His father just stared in horror. Zac had only been eleven and was frightened out of his wits. The man flung Zac to the ground and kicked him. Still pointing the gun at him, he turned once again to Jonathan Barnes. "Give me the stuff, now." His father managed to stutter out, "I don't have all of it." The man kicked Zac again, in the stomach this time. "Well, go get some more. Don't worry, I'll watch Zac."

Zac crashed back to reality. He was on his knees, clutching his head in his hands. He blinked away the tears and rubbed his stomach. It was haunted with the memory of the pain of being kicked in the stomach. He stumbled to his feet and washed his face in the bathroom. He went back into the bedroom, feeling as though this was the dream and his flashback was his reality. He went to his wardrobe and pulled out the first outfit his hands fell on. When he was dressed, he went over to his drum kit. He was about to smash into it, but he put down his sticks. He instead picked up a pick and picked a few chords on his guitar. His fingers slid up and down the frets, and his hand picked out a sad, melancholy tune. He was so scared, even though he knew it was over. He was away from all that, and he had made sure to erase himself from the memories of all of those who could hurt him. But there was always, always that chance.

He put down his guitar and made his way downstairs. He had better find out who he was going to room with. He managed to peer over the heads of everyone who was crowded around the poster. Mo had managed to weasel her way up the front. She looked pretty pleased with whoever she was rooming with. Zac scanned the list. Zac Barnes and Theodore McCaffery... Excellent. Theodore kept himself to himself, but loved to debate. He was Zac's ideal roommate, if he was brutally honest. Zac spied Mo making her way outside, probably to wait for whoever she was rooming with. He darted away from the crowd and came up beside her. She looked at him and raised her eyebrows at his grin. He looked at her and grinned even wider. He heard her voice say, "You only grin that wide if something good happens after a flashback." But her lips stayed still. "Mo, you have no idea." He thought back at her. Her lips raised a little.



Alli bolted upright a second before her alarm went off. She smiled smugly and jumped out of bed, landing perfectly. She went into the bathroom and showered, before pausing to choose her outfit. She grinned at the sound of students downstairs. More arrivals, more people to study. People would be milling around, and she intended on watching them and seeing if she could gauge their reactions. She opened the door and ran along the corridor. She couldn't resist doing a handstand at the top of the stairs.

She ran lightly downstairs and watched the variety of people as they went up and studied the list. Zac Barnes. He was closed up and obviously upset about something when he came down, but that quickly disappeared when he read the list. Spencer, the smartest guy in the school, was filled with disproval for his roommate. She winked at him and smiled, before focusing back on the crowd. Colby Haskins was disappointed that he didn't get who he wanted to room with. She played with her necklace as she watched. The foul smell of tobacco smoke stank up the reception. Alli grimaced and made her way outside. The smell of tobacco was still present, but it wasn't as noticable. She went over to Mo and Zac. "Who are you rooming with?" Zac asked. "Oh! I forgot to check!" She said, blushing a little. She went back inside. She couldn't see over anyone's heads, so she ducked and weaved her way through so she could. She was rooming with...Lulu Allen. She shrugged. There were worse people she could room with. She went back outside to Mo and Zac. Mo looked at her. "Lulu Allen." She said. Mo nodded. Zac was grinning at something, but he wouldn't reveal why.

"Ugh. I have to get away from here. You guys coming?" She asked, heading towards the forest. Mo and Zac followed her, watching the crowd of Noctrem students. When she could no longer smell the foul stench of cigarettes, she sat down on the ground and done a few stretches. When she had warmed up, she began doing handstands and somersaults. Mo and Zac watched, fascinated. This brought her right back to her days of competing. Her jeans and hoodie became a leotard. Her hair went up into a bun.

The music was barely audible over the crowd's cheers. They then went silent. She took a running start and flipped in midair, and landed in a tumble. She struck her pose before going into a handstand, which developed into a flip. She twisted, tumbled, and dazzled the crowd. She was about to go into a perfect finish when-

"OW!" Her foot caught on a root, but her dexterity meant she didn't fall over. Mo and Zac ran over to her. "Alli! Are you okay?" Mo said. "I don't know... I caught my foot on a root. I think it's just twisted, but it's damn painful." She said. Mo and Zac shared a look, and picked her up. No matter how much she protested, they insisted on carrying her in. But, thankfully, they didn't bring her to the nurse's office. Instead, they brought her upstairs and put her on a couch. "That was completely uncalled for." She grumbled. "If Spencer saw me, I will kill you." She muttered. Mo grinned. "What was that?" She forced herself to grin back. "Nothing."

Bells was sleeping curled up on her side when she woke up to her alarm going off she slammed her hand on it to turn it off without opening her eyes and sighed, she was glad that she didn‘t have a headache from last nights little party, though for some reason she didn‘t drink as much last night as she usually did. This was the day that she was hoping would never come, the day they would have to move in with the Arcana students. She laid in bed for a few minutes before getting up looking around the room, it didn’t look to neat, clothes where thrown over a chair and books where on all over the desk. She wasn’t one that didn’t keep things too clean and she knew she should of packed yesterday but she really didn’t feel like, though this morning she really wished she did. Slowly opening her eyes and swinging her legs over the bed, she was definitely not a morning person. She got up and looked around the room, grabbing her suitcases she started folding and packing her clothes, putting her books into her backpack she looked at the time knowing she will only be able to take a quick shower or she would be late which isn’t something new but she had a feeling Mr. M really wouldn’t be too happy with her being late today. She took a quick shower then got dressed in the outfit she picked out to wear today and then went to look at herself in the mirror. She knew she wouldn’t be able to straighten her mess of a hair today so she left it cury but used some mousse so it wouldn’t be frizzy, after applying some makeup she took one more look at herself in the mirror and nodded “pefect” she said out loud before she grabbed her suitcases and made her way out of the room.

She knew she was a few minutes late and made her way quickly to the bus, walking up the stairs she saw Mr.M “yeah I know im late” she said as she made her way down the aisle, seeing Jade she took a seat by her. “This is the first day of hell, lets just hope we are still going to be roommates” she said as she got settled into the seat. She then sat there quietly as the bus moved on, not making much conversation with everyone, she still needed some sort of caffeine to wake her up till she became the talkative Bells. As the bus rolled to a stop she looked to the front of the bus as Mr. M got up ”Give ‘em Hell, kids. It’s your school now too.” Bells grinned and nodded, yes give them hell is exactly what she was going to do especially Izzy. When Noctrem got burnt down and they where told they where going to Arcana all she could think about is Izzy. At the time she hated that she was going to have to be in the same school as Izzy now she was having to live in the same place he was. She made it clear to Izzy the first day she was there to stay out of her way and he wouldn’t have to feel the pain she has made Izzy feel before. Since then they have hardly said two words to each other and that is the way she hopes it still going to be.

Following everyone on the bus she walked through the doors carrying her suitcases. She saw Cor and Erin enter the reception area and she followed right behind them. As she entered she caught the end of what Cor was saying “…disaster waiting to happen.” Bell’s now didn’t have such a good feeling as she walked over to the two girls “So what kind of disaster are you talking about?” she asked but before they said anything she answered her own question as she looked over the list “he just had to do it this way, fuck this” but as she said that she found her name and saw she was rooming with Beth “well I guess it won’t be so bad with Beth, could of gotten worse…” she said knowing that the relationship she had with Beth was very confusing. Some days they talked like they where good friends, some days they didn’t talk at all and then some days they would just flirt like it was natural. She took a few steps back to let the others get in and wondered where her new roommate was, though she really needed to get coffee before the people she disliked with a passion came around.

---

Izzy was already awake, he has been awake since 5:30am and had his books on his bed as he was working on his home work and some extra credit work. Most people thought Izzy was nuts for getting up so early to work on school work but for Izzy it was something he liked to do. When he finished his work it was around 6:30am and he decided he needed to get ready. He put all his books in a neatly pile on his desk and then went to his dresser where he pulled out a pair of khaki pants and a white plain shirt, then went to his closet and grabbed a green plaid button down short sleeve shirt. He neatly put them on his bed then walked into the bathroom, though he didn’t open the door he just walked through it. He got in the shower and just let himself relax, the shower took about twenty minutes. He liked taking his time in the morning, he wasn’t one to rush things at all. After he got dressed and combed out his hair, ruffling it a bit so it wasn’t so neat looking. Seeing it was 7:00 am he knew he still had sometime before he went to find his friends. He pulled out his guitar and quietly strummed some music for awhile letting his mind wander in thought.

What really didn’t make him happy about the Noctrem students now staying at Arcana was one person, Isabella. He saw her that first day they started coming here and she gave him a straight talking to. It was the last thing she said to him and that was all he wanted to hear from his cousin. He disliked a lot of the Noctrem students because of their actions and just how they held themselves. He mostly stayed out of there way, though some of the girls from there flirted with him just to get to him which he hated a lot.

When his alarm went off at 7:15 he decided it was time to go find his friends. He grabbed his books and put them in his shoulder back pack then quickly put his timberland boots on and swung his bag over his shoulder. He walked through his door and looked down the hallway wondering where Colby, Elijah, Landon, or Ellie was. He walked slowly down the hallway and stopped at Colby’s door and knocked but no one answered so he kept walking this time stopping at Ellie’s. He knocked on the girls door “Ellie are you awake” he said quietly but loud enough for her to hear. Ellie was one of Izzy’s good friends and he always liked the girls company. He knew a lot of people didn’t like to be around Ellie that much because of her power but he really didn’t mind, though he tried not to think about the feelings he started feeling for Ellie lately, he really didn’t want to cause and tension between them and he wasn’t even sure how Ellie felt so he just kept it to himself for now. He stayed there patiently waiting to see if Ellie would answer.

---

Spencer heard his alarm clock go off, but he paid no attention to it. It was one of those annoying bell ones that nobody could stand, but somehow Spencer was able to keep sleeping. Although for every thirty seconds that passed, the ringing got louder and louder until even Spencer couldn't sleep. Then something happened that someone from the outside would see an unusual, but anyone that knew Spencer well enough saw as normal. He took out a dark gun, but it wasn't the usual kind. You could say that Spencer, "tricked it out". It was more futuristic, but it had the same function, being a dart gun. Although it was ten times stronger than a normal one. Spencer didn't even look up from his pillow and he took the shot. The dart flew across the and hit the alarm right at the eight hour mark. The clock flew backwards and broke. It was silent for a while and Spencer once again tried to sleep. Then the alarm clock moved around as if something was inside and at last it broke apart into two pieces, with another alarm clock inside. Although this one sported mechanical legs and started to run around the room for a few minutes until it reached Spencer's bed, and finally Spencer himself. Then it spouted a hammer and started banging Spencer on the arm. This forced him to wake up and as he tried to catch it, it just jumped away. Without missing a single ring, the "alarm clock" went into hiding in Spencer's already ready suitcase.

Spencer finally gave up on the thought of sleeping. I'll just sleep on the bus he thought. He got out of him bed, fully dressed in a green t-shirt with a gaping hole on the bottom of the shirt, a torn pair of jeans, and his signature lab coat. He went to the tiny motel bathroom. There was some green slime on the bathroom mirror after he tried to create a new type of toothpaste that cleaned teeth on its own. Sadly it was unsuccessful. Then he put on his glasses and tried to settle his unruly hair, tried. Meanwhile, his alarm clack was still ringing until Spencer went to his suitcase and dismantled it. Then he took a pen from the nearby desk and took out his notepad from his pocket and mumbled to himself, Note to self: Find a better way to wake up. Or just don't wake up at all.. Spencer sighed. He liked having a room to himself, even if it was just a normal three star motel room.

Finally he decided it was time for him to get at least another ten minutes of sleep on the bus. Sparky he called to his little robot assistant. A small robot no bigger than a teacup was carrying his two big suitcases. It put them underneath the bus, where all the luggage goes then the little robot just jumped into Spencer's lab coat pocket. As he entered the bus, he saw Cor and Erin sitting next to each other. Of course, what would anyone expect anything else from them. he thought to himself. He found himself an empty spot, and the best one on the bus too. That one seat behind the back door, the one that has its own window and great leg room. Yeah, that amazing spot. Finally he could sleep, but the bus was so noisy he couldn't and that kinda pissed him off. Right as he was about to finally fall asleep, they reached Arcana. Spencer sighed once more as he got of the bus. He released Sparky once more to carry his luggage as he just started walking toward the school, mumbling to himself and taking about fifty pills that he made against headaches. He slept way to little last night. Fifteen hours just doesn't cut it. From the corner of his eye he already saw three people smoking, of course. Cain was smoking way to many, Likely due to stress Spencer thought, Addi also, but Ben was just addicted. He couldn't even go an hour without smoking and everyone at Noctrem knew that. Spencer saw Ben a drag that no right person would able to take if they needed oxygen. He then decided that its none of his business and with that thought he forgot about them all together as he mind switch to other topics. Such as, who will he room with?

As he reached the entrance of Arcana, he saw a group of students all around a list. The roommate one. Many people had dissatisfied looks on their faces while others were just neutral. Spencer scanned the list and found his name, Room Twelve with Jackson Murphy he mumbled to himself. Spencer grimiced, he wanted a room to himself, so he could experiment freely without some stupid roommate complaining. Also Jackson was notorious for his parties. Not in my room Spencer thought. He looked around the room to see if he could find Jackson, scanning the faces quickly.

---

Ben yawned as he opened his eyes, he was beat. Last night he went to some club in the city and got completely wasted. He was surprised that he somehow got to his motel room in one piece. He glanced at the clock. It read 4:45, way to early for Ben's liking, but since he's awake why not go for a early morning stroll. As he sat in the motels garden, he took out a cigarette and lit it up with his lighter. It had an orange paw print on it with the name Lucifer, for his very own cat. Since Lucifer was with his sister since the fire, he kinda missed the orange fur-ball. He took a long drag.....and then blew it out. This was his stress reliever and he couldn't quit even if he wanted to. Ben just sat outside until the sun came out and even a bit after. Then he decided that he should get ready.

Turns out Ben was longer than expected outside. When he came back to his room he only had about ten minutes until the bus left. Shit! Ben yelled as he pretty much threw everything he owned in the ginormous bag that he owned. He hurried up to get dressed in jeans and a white and black striped t-shirt. I woke up early and yet still i'm late, I don't even have enough time to find Eri and play some last minute pranks on those motel workers. Ben and Eriol were torturing the motel workers for the past two months, over ten workers have quit.

Ben ran as fast as he could to the bus. Man, Cain's gonna kill me Ben said out loud to himself. He threw his bag under the bus in the compartment and quickly boarded the bus, with two minutes to spare. Ben let out a sigh of relief, but then he noticed he was wearing his slippers. Not any slippers. His Winnie the Pooh ones. Oh great Ben thought to himself. Its not like the Noctrem students have never seen them, but Arcana haven't. Although after a while Ben just didn't really care anymore because what was done is done. Ben saw Bells come in late. At least I'm not last he thought. After that, they started the bus and they were on their way to Arcana.

When they reached Arcana, Ben was one of the last people to leave the bus. Lets say he's not that excited about the new arrangement. He was far more happier being where he was in the motel, even though the food tasted like shit. He always went to the nearby liquor store and bought tons of munchies. There can never be too much food. Hey he was hungry even now, but first things first. Ben took out another cigarette and started to smoke again. Who knows if his new roomie will be a bitch about it, but truthfully if he was, Ben didn't care. Although Ben doubted someone from Noctrem would care since half of them smoke. He saw he wan't the only one smoking, even Drake took one from Addie.

Finally he finished and just threw the bud on the floor. Ben started to walk towards Arcana and saw everyone huddled around something and from all the commotion, Ben could tell it wasn't good. He read the list, he was in room eight with Elijah. Oh great Ben said out loud. Then he saw who was in the next room, Cor. Now this is going to be hilarious.

Scott Martin Andrews

I believe it’s been two months? Two months since the school fire. I was sleeping in my room when the fire began. I smelt the scent of burning amber and I knew something was not right. Rumor has it that it was a trespasser that came to our school and had sent Noctrem burning. Other students believe it was the kids from Arcana. If it was one of them then there would probably be some fanatical war between both schools. I can’t really recall our schools ever being nice to each other really. We've been up at each others throats perhaps since both schools were built. We‘re complete polar opposites. Think of everyone in Arcana Academy as the good kids. They want to do good things with there powers, then there is us, that take hold of the title as the bad kids. Everyone here either likes to cause destruction, or likes to inflict pain, I’m neither. I can tell your right now, there’s some ruthless types of personalities over in this school and that only strive for dominance.

Now your probably wondering, “why aren’t you in Arcana then?”
Well because of my power and possibly because of my attitude. I can manipulate electricity. I could kill you if I wanted to. I killed my own mom, something that haunts me every second I live. Something I have never told anyone, not even my foster-parents. There’s a huge emotional link that is connected to my ability. So if I get mad or I’m in some sort of pain your either on the floor knocked out cold or on the verge of death. I cause major ruin, and I’m some what shamed of it. Sometimes I almost feel that I’m destined to fight bad guys or something but I can’t help but think I am the bad guy, the villain. I’ll just keep my thoughts to myself.

The moment the bus had stopped Scott went into a trance. He was staring at Arcana like it was a castle and it truly looked like one. It felt like he was looking at Noctrem again, he was home. Even though that sounds cliché, It was true. Scott grabbed onto his bags and watched each of the students leave the bus. Scott knew there was someone missing, he notices that there's someone all the way on the back of the bus. It was Theodore, someone that Scott didn't fully know.

Wake up, were here!" Scott doesn't go for the rude awakening but just goes for a lighter tactic and waits for him to wake up. After multiple times of calling his name, Theo's eyes snap open and it almost startles Scott. From the intensity of his eyes Scott only wonders what he was dreaming about.
"Were here, we arrived in Arcana." Scott gives a friendly smirk and before Theodore can say anything Scott makes his way to the exit.

As soon as Scott jumped out of the bus he knew his first priority is to find the list. The list which will determine who he is rooming with. He looks side to side, and finds that everyone seems to be crowding around at the entrance. He knows everyone here, he’s legitimately known by all the girls, for certain reasons. He moves closer to the list and scrolls down to try and find his name. I’m with Izaiah Dorson, the guy that can walk through walls. He's alright , they would certainly get along because of the fact that both of them enjoy sports. He couldn’t help himself but actually think about Izaiah’s cousin, Isabella Dorson.

Both Scott and Bella would see each other at parties and they would enrol into a good old make out session. Scott couldn’t help but smile like a fool but he began to think about all the other girls he had a romantic interest with. There was him and Cor, who he had slept with a good amount of times. They have this friends with benefits thing still going on and in Scott’s opinion, it's fucking delightful. There was a giant variety of girls and really, Scott can't help himself. There is one girl though, that he has major feelings for. A girl that he utterly loves and feels for the most, Freya Mason. There she was, for a moment she hadn't noticed him but as she looked towards his direction he had turned around and made his way into the school.

Sitting in the bus, Drake felt like he was about to burst and he had no idea why. Today, of all days he’d scurried off to sit by himself in the bus. He’d noticed a lot of the others; his sister and Erin for instance, probably both hung-over from drinking the alcohol most of them thought he didn’t know they’d snatched. Of course Cor knew he always kept tabs on his alcohol. Those were fucking expensive drops, and a lot of the chicks liked to mix it with soda. If you wanted to mix alcohol with soda, you should buy the cheap cat-piss and leave his 20-years whiskey alone. Of course he had trouble getting through to his sister who drank like there was no tomorrow. He doubted she even enjoyed the taste of it. Just, down it goes and yay, drunkness. He sank deeper into his seat, sighing at the softness. He didn’t really have reservations about stayed at Arcana, that was fine, really, except he felt like it meant they’d never have a Noctrem again. Probably not while he still studied, anyway. Then again, he had like half a year or something left and that was only because he’d chosen to stay longer. Ah, the joys of being 19.

As the bus pulled to a stop and the announcement rang out that they were there, followed to Cain making his own kind of ‘speech’, Drake smiled wryly. It was really more of an encouragement to wreak havoc on the school then a welcome. You had to love it. This was, at the very least, going to be entertaining. He couldn’t even imagine the shit that’d go down the first week. He smiled to himself, waiting until the worst throng of people had scurried out the vehicle until he hopped down the small stairs, landing on solid ground. Much better. Maybe his unease came from driving. He hated driving when he wasn’t behind the wheel himself. Which, yes, had made this last week hell for. Especially if he hadn’t had his coffee in the morning. He took his bag from the driver who was grumbling by now. Drake just grinned at him. “Hey, at least it’s the last time you have to drive these crazy fuckers.” And with that he made his way over to the Academy’s front doors, which was where he spotted Addie with her back to him. Perfect.

Drake quietly made his way over to the gorgeous brunette, silently putting down his bag to snake his arms around her. “Morning, gorgeous,” he whispered, chuckling. His lips were right by her ear, his warm breath on her skin. “Nervous?” He then added, his voice normal again as he straightened, still holding her, and snatched her cigarette to have a drag, letting the nicotine smooth out the last bits of unease from the drive. There, much better. He let the smoke slip out through his lips. “You drink my alcohol, I smoke you cigarettes.” He merely added as an explanation. Of course he would’ve snagged it anyway, but hey. He glanced inside the reception and raised an eyebrow when he saw his sister laughing. What the hell was so funny about roommates? He’d decided to wait until the worst of the crowd had had their look and then stalk in there like a boss, but now he found himself growing curious. He took another drag of Addie’s cigarette as he mulled it over. Should he give in to temptation or not. Nah… he was quite content here. Besides, he didn’t really give a shit who his roommate was going to be. Didn’t really pay it much mind. He’d see soon enough, anyways.

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.

Ashy had been awake for some time,sitting at her window. She had seen the sun rise slowly over the splendid gardens of Arcana, the school she has she had considered safe until about a month ago; it was about the become even less safe now. Whilst she didn't doubt the staff would do everything they could to make sure the students obeyed the rules, she also knew that there were quite a lot of people who were very good at avading rules, Cor Quellen and her gang for example.

The build up to today had made Ashy nervous. She had just about learnt to tolerate most of these people and and been able to adapt to them being here. Now she had no escape from them. The people that enjoyed making her scared, making her blush and making her break rules....although sometimes that wasn't such a bad thing. Sky had shown her some pretty cool things over the past month, even if it had been to Zack's annoyance. There some people Ashy liked from Noctrem however, but most of them she stayed clear from...too much drama.

Ashy turned away from the window; she longed to be out there,feeling the cold morning breeze against her skin. Nevertheless, it was time to face the day. She had been anxious to see who she had been paired with for a while; she really hoped that she hadn't been put with any of the 'fearless five' as they had been dubbed. That just spelt trouble from the outset, and Ashy wanted to stay as far away from...drama as was humanly possible, especially when it came to those guys.

She quickly jumped in the shower, she was never one to take long showers despite her connection with water, before wrapping herself in a towel and standing in front of her wardrobe. What to wear? This debate hadn't come up for a while, not since...maybe the first day of term? Ashy was the first one to admit that she cared far too much about what people thought of both her personality and her looks. Well, when you came from a world where image is everything, who would blame you?

Finally, Ashy decided on a dress with some flesh coloured tights. It was a nice day after all. The outfit itself was just right for school Ashy decided. Maybe she'd have a little cardigan to go with it, inc case it got cold.

Finally, after having a mild debate with herself and deciding that yes, her hair looked fine up, Ashy left her bedroom. She had given a bit of a tidy up last night, mostly through lack of sleep, but the room still had the distinct 'lived in feel.' Ashy smiled to herself, she did want her new roomy to feel welcome, whoever it was.

She ambled slowly down to reception, she was quite looking forward to see who her room mate was. She hoped that they had been sensible to a degree with the rooming. Did they really expect Noctrem and Arcana student pairings to get along? She noticed, as she arrived at reception that people were crowded around one of the noticeboard. That must be the list Ashy thought to herself. She walked over to the list, making a point not to directly look at someone as passed them by. 'Room Seventeen Ashleigh Fox and Freya Mason.' The sign read. Ashy took a sigh of relief, she may be a bit of alcoholic like the rest of them, but Freya was nice enough and they some hobbies in common. They could be civil enough, Ashy decided as she looked up the list to see who her friends where with. Ben was with Elijah; that also made Ashy. They were nice enough guys after all.

Ashy took a few steps back and waited for Freya to arrive so she could show her to he- their room. This was the start of something special.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



The screams of a dying man.... the blackness.... the corpse lying on the floor

BEEP BEEP BEEP

Jess's alarm cut through the horrid images that had been plaguing through her mind, the images that brought her here to Noctrem, the images that taught her more about her powers.

She rolled over to face the little bedside cabinet at the motel that the students had been staying at since the fire, pressed snooze on the alarm. She was most defiantly not a morning person. Jess reached for her glasses that lying, almost perfectly next to the alarm clock. Jess was very protective of her glasses in the idea that she needed them to see, so took extra care with. She then rolled onto her back and stared at the cracked ceiling of the motel. Thank god they were leaving this place, it meant she could lie in that little bit longer before having to be at school.

Jess wasn't in the least bit apprehensive about 'moving in day' there were a few people that she didn't want to put with, but she wasn't scared...most of the people at her school thought she was freak because of her mood swings combined with her power, but life went on.

Slowly but surely, Jess got ready for school, deciding after showering that atee shirt,jeans and a pair of converse was an acceptable outfit to wear to school and it wasn't? Well she didn't really care. After quickly running a brush through her hair and brushing her teeth, she packed her the last remaining items into her case and made her way down to the coach that was to transport them to Arcana. this is where the fun begins.

On the coach, Jess kept herself to herself, everyone was far too tired or hungover to have be in any sort of happy mood. Jess plugged her iPod in and to listen to some of The Auditions in an effort to wake her up a little more. She really did hate mornings.
She saw Mr Montgomery stand up so popped one of her earphones out of her ears to listen to his 'speech.' In reality It was a few words; 'Give them hell kids, it's your school now too.' This was met with not much reaction. Oh please, they're not all that bad Jess thought to herself, rolling her eyes at no one in particular as the coach pulled up the school.

Jess was always awe struck whenever she came here at how stunning the place was, it was always absolutely immaculate you don't deserve to be here a voice in Jess's head stated. Jess choose to ignore it. Dammit, this would be a good day and nothing was going to bring her down.

Dragging her case behind her, Jess strolled in reception where a small group of people had gathered around, what Jess guessed was the rooming list. A small buzz of anticipation hit Jess as she walked towards it. Who would she be with? She was actually excited to find out. 'Room Eleven Morgan Janseen and Jessica Coleman.' Jess smiled. She liked Morgan she was bubbly and knew exactly how to have a good time, unlike some of the others. She just worried about what Morgan would have to put with now that they were constantly sharing a room...

She looked across the reception hall to see Morgan standing there waiting for her expectantly. She gave the girl a warm smile, before taking out the other headphone for of her Ipod and tucking it into her jeans pocket and walking over to her.
'Hey roomy, how's it hangin' ' She said loudly, giving Morgan a hug, 'So, wanna show me to our room?' She asked still smiling from ear to ear.

Landon rolled his eyes for possibly the 80th time this morning as he and Colby walked along the dormitory hall. His best friend had been chattering about roommates all morning but his excitement proved to be contagious as Landon returned the grin. Rooming with Colby would definitely be ideal, it wouldn't ever be awkward and the only disagreements they would have would be over stupid things like what movie they planned on watching that evening. Besides, any argument they had could be resolved with hot make-up sex. “It'd be pretty cool,” he said in his dispassionate way of speaking, “It wouldn't even be much of an adjustment considering the way you already barge into my room like you live there.”

If it had been anyone else throwing himself into Landon's room and ripping away the nest of blankets he slept tangled in they wouldn't have made it past the door. There wasn't a chance that they'd make it passed the door before being stopped, shoved out, and confronted with a slamming door with three simple motions from beneath the nest. Colby, however; served as an alarm clock of sorts, one that most certainly did not have a snooze button. The roommate talk started immediately and continued while Landon tore away from the bed, showered, got dressed in his grey button down and dark jeans and even now as they walked down the hall. Colby had speculated on every single pairing for both boys that seemed possible, each Arcana student followed by a perceived compatibility,which Landon would toss in a comment for every so often, and even one lonely headmaster, which warranted a severe toss of a pillow.

Whenever he questioned why they were such good friends despite vast personality differences moments like that served as a reminder. The goofy antics, cheeky comments, and that infallible confidence were a few things about Colby that had kept them close and what they lacked in shared traits they made up for in similar interests and an appreciation for each other's humor. Whatever it was that bonded them so, Landon knew Arcana just wouldn't be worth it without him. If it weren't for that goofy speedster he would have kept to himself, not really connecting with anyone and would eventually leave, go back to his uncle's.

As it were, though, they walked down the hall running out of roommate combos. Izzy, he'd be all right, Colby definitely had it right, he was cute but other than that Landon didn't know too much about him. Jay, the former and still would be Noctrem would be a shit roommate, but he knew what Colby's blurring head meant and laughed at the horny mess that is Colby Haskins. They made it down to the first floor where everyone was gathered and as Colby munched on his nasty protein bar thing, Landon scanned the room at a much slower pace taking note of the mix of Arcana and Noctrem students crowding around the bulletin board. Not seeing the one person he was looking for he scowled at the small cloud of smoke gathering above several students and faculty members. Sure he'd smoked in the past and been around people who smoke all the time, but the cheap smell always brought back memories of his filthy mother and their home life in Seattle. He looked back to his friend, but instead he only found a slight breeze.

There wasn't even time to sigh before Redline was back and cursing in confusion. “He's not new, just drop the 'ethrean'” he said with a slight grin. Landon wondered how that would work out and he also wondered what it meant that Colby was paired with a Noctrem, they couldn't all be mixed could they? Curiosity piqued, he moved closer to the throng but was stopped by Colby's question. “Yeah, right...there” he licked his thumb and wiped the chocolate smudge off the corner of his friends mouth, in as motherly a fashion as possible. Not bothering to ask who Colby was trying to impress, he went ahead through mass of student's to the list.

If there was one good thing about mixing the two schools it was that the Arcana students at least got to keep their own room. As for his roommate, he hardly recognized the name. He searched his memory for anything distinctive but came up with almost nothing, he could hardly put a face to the name after a month of being at the school together. He walked back into the middle of the room and waited for Eriol to find him.

McKenna had woke up at four am and had taken a long walk through the woods. She resided outside the school, listening to nature as it awoke from its peaceful night slumber. But something else gets in the way of her enjoying natures sounds when she hears a bus screech and she sighs, the Noctrem students had arrived... A pit grew in McKenna's stomach and she began to feel extremely nervous. She didn't feel like being bullied, or pushed around... The Noctrem students scared her. Especially the girl students. They were like Mean Girls, on steroids... McKenna folds up her notebook, placing it in her bag and heading towards the cafeteria, she needed some food in her stomach. But something stopped her, the roommate listing. Some of the Noctrem, and also Arcana students had already begun to find their roommates, some pleased, others weren't.

"Do I dare look at it?" She asks herself, and bustles her way towards the front with Excuse me, Pardon me...

Her heart drops when she sees the name in bold print next to hers:

Room Five: McKenna Marinos and Jade Locke.

Oh dear... McKenna's eyes widen with terror and she backs up a bit, walking quickly to the cafeteria. Swinging open the cafeteria doors she begins to pile her plate with food -- for McKenna was a bit of a stress eater.

Four pancakes, three sausage links, a muffin, a bowl of fruit, and a cup of tea.

McKenna took her food outside and sat outside underneath a tree. She begins to eat and sighs, she pulls out the picture from the back of her notebook -- it was paper clipped to the very back page -- and unfolds it, the corners were slightly torn, the creases were worn in. She traced her mothers face with her finger, and then stared at the man, happily smiling, arms wrapped around her and she feels her smile fade a bit.

But she had almost no doubts in her mind that it was him... Her father... Maybe Aunt Lily had sent her here for that particular reason. She shakes her head, placing the picture down on her sketch pad and took a sip of her tea.

Maybe she should just keep this a secret for now... Everyone in Arcana was talking about it though, for the most part... Or at least had put some thought into it. She couldn't do that today though...Maybe later... Maybe never...

---

Addi was lost in thought when arms snaked around her waist and Drake's voice made its way to her conscious.

"Mornin' gorgeous," She heard him chuckle and she gives a small smirk, not even turning.

"Well, good morning to you, Drake."

"Nervous?" He asks, his warm breath dances across her neck and she got a little bit of chills, but she shook her head anyway.

Nervous? Of course she wasn't.... Okay, maybe a little. But the crush was juvenile. She knew he was just only curious, never consider dating her to say the least. She'd wanted Drake in her bed since sophomore year... Of course, her and Cor had already become close friends and had a few heavy petting scandals, so having heavy relations with both of the Quellen siblings might be a bit strange.

Without warning, Drake then snatched the cigarette from her, and took a long drag, claiming that since she drank his booze, he had the right to smoke her cigarettes. She chuckles softly, shaking her head, a few pieces of hair falling in her face. She plucks the cigarette from his hands as he took the second drag.

"Didn't mama ever tell you smoking was bad for your health?" She asks, her eyes floating to the side as she turns her head a slight bit towards his, a smirk flickers onto her lips. With a small wiggle of her hips she unlatches herself from Drake's grip and smiles at him with a small wink.

"I'll see ya around, Quellen." She grabs her luggage and flicks the butt of her cigarette then proceeds to walk inside to check the roommate schedule.

She clicks her tongue out of annoyance, "What is this bullshit?" She asks, "They're mixing us with those..." She shakes her head, not even finishing her sentence.

Ellie Carson.

The girl who could read minds. Fuck that... She lets out a sigh, she needed food, and coffee before she could possibly take on the day with all of Leo's brainwashed Goodies.

Life in a motel was not pleasant. It was quite far from it, especially when one was rooming by ones self and had no line of defense from a group of begrudging young women. Lulu Allen was a girl of few friends and many enemies, though she had never intended to wrong so many people. The blond woke to silence, the air thick and muggy as her room’s air conditioner had been broken intentionally the week they had moved in by Cor Quellen. She’d called it a welcoming gift, wandering off to room with her brother. Lulu had dealt with it. No matter how much the motel’s repairmen tried to fix it, the thing wouldn’t turn on. If it did, it blasted hot air, making her room even more unbearable. The heat had left her with little more option than to sleep in her underwear with a bucket of ice at close hand to try and cool off. On the hotter nights she’d gone without much sleep, taking to a routine she had long perfected at Noctrem. Mild insomnia would have her wander the school, make her way to the cafeteria’s kitchens where luck would have it that the chef du jour left her something edible. If things went right at Noctrem, Lulu would run into her former hallmate Drake. In the motel, however, the Quellen boy was rarely seen. If they were in class together, Lulu resigned to staying away from him and if anything doing all that she could to blend in and avoid the brewing fight that seemed to be coming.

It was a joy to know that the motel would no longer be their place of residence. Lulu’s face could not hide her relief as she hauled a black duffel bag on her shoulder to the bus line-up. She held a paper coffee cup in her hand and kept her head low, a dull thud prodding her temples. Having pushed her powers in the past two weeks – both in helping or harming those who cared to bug her on top of her lessons and private sessions – left her feeling hungover when she hadn’t had a drop to drink in weeks. Maybe I should, she thought lowly. Squeezing her eyes shut, she tucked her chin and watched as Cor stood near the front of the lineup to board a coach bus out. When they boarded, Lulu sat herself at the front across from Cain, pulling the hood of her black sweater over her hair and leaning her head into the window beside her, if only to drift the few minutes it took for them to arrive at Arcana. The routine was near perfected at that point. If she sat at the front, no shit would happen. Her eyes danced over Cain’s slumped figure. She didn’t need to ask about the disposable cup in his hands. She knew it was his morning concoction and she wished she could steal it for herself before she moved, closed her eyes, and kept her backpack close to her. Six weeks of little to no sleep had her struggling to stay awake.

Cain’s booming voice had her startle and wake up. "Give ‘em Hell, kids. It’s your school now too!” he cheered, his voice raspy and yet authoritative. She’d always liked it. Lulu smiled weakly at her mentor before standing and hauling herself out the steps to the curb. The school was impressive, the white marble practically sparkling for their arrival. Lulu moved to collect her bag before something happened to it, standing out of the way from Cor and Erin who moved closely together. Keeping her eyes on the ground she nearly ran into Drake as he paused to take a cigarette from Addison. Lulu watched as he leaned into the brunette’s ear, whispering sweet words before standing tall and proud while she processed his comments. When he stepped back her shoulder knocked into his and Lulu allowed herself to slid sideways, her feet arranging themselves to catch her. Swinging her bag around to her other shoulder, Lulu flushed and kept walking. It wasn’t until she was in the main foyer that she turned to look over her shoulder at him. Shaking her head at the display, she focused on in the billboard listing roommates. Her eyes scanned the list behind the shoulders of a few others. Lulu didn’t care to notice who they were, only to note where she was headed.

Room Fifteen: Alli Jackson and Luly Allen

What smile she possessed disappeared. They couldn’t even manage to spell her name right. Lulu frowned and clenched her teeth, shaking her head and turning away. It seemed like a joke, especially with how often people belittled her since arriving and her name had shown up on all the class lists as Talulah.

Being at Arcana had been a hard sell to her parents. When the fire had happened, Lulu had been immediately confronted by her mother who would rather she attend a public school in Washington over attend the ‘goody-goody’ school. It has taken a week of arguing before she’d finally won them over, telling her parents both that she wanted to stay and that Cain was still working with her and they were making progress. Of course, now she had to prove that she was making progress which meant pushing herself on little to no sleep and thus feeling as she did then – ready to throw up in a bucket, curl up in a ball, and pray she could find some peace.

As she prepared to turn away from the listing, Lulu turned back to look at it again. She spotted Drake’s name close to the top of the list, his room far beyond hers. Disappointment laced her features momentarily before she moved, hauling her bag and removing her cell phone from her bag to fire a message off to the one person who may be excited that she was finally there.

Jack, looks like we’re here to stay. Room 15 for me. Where are you? - Lulu <3

Kali Rickerson

Kali woke up to her alarm blaring at 6:15 am so she had enough time to take a run, she got dressed in one of her white t-shirts and a pair of black jogging shorts. She went downstairs and outside, it was still early so she didn’t meet anyone on her way out. She stretched for a few minutes before she started her light jog around the school. She was near the end of making it around the building once, her breathing was a bit heavy but she needed to go at least once more around the school, it was what she did every morning so she would stay in shape.

When she was coming to the front of the school she slowed down to a light jog as she saw the Noctrem students coming off the bus. She kept on going until she saw Drake, her thoughts started going as she thought of Drake, with his dark hair…hot body, she let out a sigh. As she got lost in thought she lost her balance tripping right behind Drake “shit” she said out loud, quickly got up and ran off before anyone could say anything to her. Once she made it around to the other side of the building she stopped taking a few breaths “Damnit Kali get it together, you can’t keep doing that whenever you are near him” she thought to herself then looked down to her knees, which now where bleeding. She brushed her knees off and took a few breaths before she continued on jogging though a little bit slower because the fall to the knees.

She knew the roommate list was up but she wasn’t too interested in it, she knew she would meet whoever her roommate was soon enough. She really didn’t have anything against the Noctrem students, yeah some of them can be assholes but she just ignores it. She doesn’t waist her breath on the ones that don’t pay attention to her. She was wondering who her friends got for roommates though, she was hoping one of them would be her roommate but knowing her luck it probably wasn’t going to happen. She just hoped it was someone that like to have a good time, and not always drinking.

She jogged to the back of the school, stopping for a few minutes to catch her breath, she looked around and saw someone sitting by a tree. She jogged a little closer and saw that it was Kenna. She ran quicker over to the girl and smiled “Hey Kenna” she said as she got closer but then noticed the girl looking at what seemed to be a picture. “Oh do you want to be alone? I just saw you over here alone…and wanted to say hi. Oh do you know who you roommate is yet?” she asked deciding to sit down, if Kenna did decided to be alone she would get up and leave. She understood how sometimes there is times that you just wanted to be alone to think. She looked down at her knees, seeing the scrapes she brushed them again with her hands trying to get the blood off them.

Sky Byrnes

'Get away from me. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it.' The words swirled around in Sky's head as Tom approached him, but the words stuck in the back of his throat and would come out of his mouth. Tears ran down his cheeks as his stepfather grabbed him by his hair and threw him against a wall. He tried to scream for his mother, but everything was silent. His heart pounded in his chest as he tried to crawl away from the grown man.

"Leave me alone." He managed to beg, before recieving a kick in his ribs from Tom. "Shut up, you little fucker." Sky groaned as he rolled over on his back, looking up at man above him. "Please stop. I'll be good, I swear. I won't tell my mom. Just please, Tom, stop it." Tom just shook his head and smirked. "You don't have the balls to tell your mom." He undid his belt and threw it across the room, before getting on top of Sky and pinning his arms to the ground. "Your just a little bitch. Now shut up and stay still." Sky closed his eyes as more and more tears streamed down from them, waiting for what was to come.

Sky woke with a jump, looking around the motel room to assure him that he was back in reality. His breathing was heavy and there was sweat on his brow. Damn. His nightmares had been getting worse lately. His flashbacks too. He grunted as he looked as his alarm clock. Just a few minutes until he would have had to wake up. Whatever. He got out of the motel bed and went to the bathroom to begin his journey to perfection. After showering for twenty minutes, brushing his teeth for fifteen, and shaving/applying moisturizer/gazing at himself in the mirror for ten, he was almost ready. Now, he just had to make sure his pride and joy was ready to amaze the world.

His hands worked like machines, spreading various gels and mousses through it, and sculpting it like a fine statue. "Perfecto!" He exclaimed before spraying it with his favorite hairspray, some strange brand from Spain that his Tia Jenny got for him. He walked to a chair next to the bed, on which he set down his decided outfit the previous night. He quickly dressed, but decided to throw his beanie into his bag. He was not going to ruin his hair after all the work he just put into it. And it was time for the finishing touch. He grabbed his two diamond studs and placed them in his ears. Sky turned around and checked himself out in the mirror. "How you doing, Sexual?"

Sky grabbed all his bags and he was just going to walk out the door when "Oh shit!" He dropped his bags and raced back to the bed, sliding a large box from underneath it. "Almost forgot you." He said with a sigh of relief. This was his sacred "Party Box". The things contained in this box could transform any gathering of people into a banging party. It was heavy, but Sky could manage as he grabbed his luggage again and made his way to the bus.

He slept the way to Arcana, with his head against the window and his earbuds blaring music into his ears. Sky woke up and walked off the bus, grabbing his lucky lighter and a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He placed one in his mouth and lit it, looking around. He noticed several other people were smoking as well, including Cain and Addi. He put the pack and the lighter back into his pockets before getting his luggage and the Party Box. The cigarette hung from his lips as he followed everyone to the list of roommates, but he couldn't hear anything because of his earphones. He set the Box down before moving through the crowd, trying to get a peep at the list. He saw Cor's amused face as she looked at the list and Sky decided to take his earbuds out, catching the end of her sentence.
"-and Sky? That’s just a disaster waiting to happen.” Sky raised an eyebrow. "Who am I rooming with?" He uttered, his cigarette still between his lips. He puffed some smoke out of the side of his mouth as he ran eyes over the list. He noticed immediately that the rooms were mixed between the Arcana and Noctrem students. He really hoped that he got roomed with Colby, but if he did, they would be very...distracted most of the time. Let's just say they wouldn't spend much time doing homework.

That's when Sky saw it. The lit end of his cigarette grew brighter and brighter, practically setting it on fire and quickly burning it down until it was nothing but a stub. He spit it out and wasted no time before saying how he felt. "Are you fucking kidding me? I'm in a fucking room with fucking Jay?" He was livid as a flurry of fast and angry Spanglish left his lips. "I can't believe they put me with that pinche cabron. Fucking pendejo. Hijo de puta." Sky muttered some other words under his breath, still obviously switching between English and Spanish as he ranted to himself. Out of all the people at Arcana, he got stuck with one of the very few people he didn't like. In fact, he disliked Jay. Maybe he even hated him a little bit. "Whatever." He said, finally coming down from his anger high.

He started to walk away from the list when he saw someone by the list for a split second. Did Arcana have a teleporter? Sky didn't think so and he spent a moment puzzled until a grin came to his face. Colby. The pyro looked around for the speedster, grabbing his bags and the Party Box. What couldn't he have gotten a room with Colbs?

(Will post for Amber and Eden soon. ^-^)

Working on Jade now.

He found him at the lake.

The lake was a memory, a piece of his childhood untainted by pain. It had been a few hours from his house by car, a fixture of his summers. He always got to bring a friend, and he and that friend would swim and splash while one of his parents looked on, monitoring him to ensure that he didn’t simply fall asleep and drown. Whenever he needed a lake, it was the first lake that came to mind. Spreading its silvery looking waters and the copses of pine and birch that surrounded it was surprisingly easy for a geographic feature so large. Sometimes when he added geography, it was more akin to airbrushing a background, but with the lake… it always seemed more real.

Scott was sitting on a small dock made almost entirely out of driftwood. He was wearing a bathing suit, relaxing. His bare feet dangled in the water, scissoring gently, but his attention was cast upward, where the endless eggshell blue sky stretched into an imposing bank of angry-looking clouds.

It didn’t even take a thought for Theo to change into a bathing suit as well, baggy and modest, black with thin white stripes spaced a few inches apart. There was no rippling, no melting, no morphing. One instant he’d been wearing cargo pants and a t-shirt, the next trunks and a different t-shirt, more appropriate for the warm summer day that either he or Scott had conjured. He could never be sure which anymore. Scott seemed to have just as much control of their surroundings as he did, these days. It was almost like he was learning, the same way he had in life. Just seeing Theo do it meant that he could do it too.

“It looks like there’s a storm coming.” Scott spoke without looking back at him. The dead boy raised his hand, flicked his wrist. A stone, small and flat, which hadn’t been there before went arcing at the water, hitting once and then skipping nearly a dozen times before its momentum and spin petered out and it sank.

Theo dropped down to sit beside him, leaned into him. Scott didn’t pull away. He never had. He never did. “That’s a bit ominous, don’t you think?” Theo asked it teasingly, and in unison they gave Scott’s trademark reply to the question. “It’s your dream.”

Theo looked skyward as well. The clouds were a dirty looking gray sheet slowly being drawn toward them… only it wasn’t slow, it only seemed that way. They were so distant that he shouldn’t have been able to perceive their movement at all. He was distracted when he felt familiar fingers brush the skin of his back, his stomach. Scott was pulling his shirt off. Either of them could simply have willed him to be shirtless, but where was the fun in that. “C’mon,” Scott said, hopping to his feet once he’d exposed Theo’s pale torso. “Let’s swim before it starts.”

Smiling, Theo nodded and stood as well. He bent his knees, as if preparing to cannonball into the lake, but then sidestepped behind Scott and tried to shove him in. Almost as always, Scott was too fast. He slid one leg back and twisted, grabbing one of Theo’s arms and jerking him forward so that he tripped over Scott’s other leg. Rather than let him fall though, Scott kept hold of his wrist and swung about, digging in his heels. Theo wound up hanging backwards, laughing, the soles of his feet on the very edge of the dock, waiting for Scott to let go. He looked up at the boy he loved as he raised his free hand to give him a defiant middle finger. He frowned though as the world around him seemed to ripple, to shake. That was when Scott let go, and Theo fell.

---

Reality intruded on his dream of the lake. Theo’s eyes did snap open, and in the hypnopompic aftermath of the other Scott’s wake-up call, he felt more annoyed than intense. It died away though, the vivid dreamscape giving way to the Arcana-bound bus that he had boarded… he glanced at his watch… not so long ago. He’d been one of the first on it, and now he’d be one of the last to disembark. He could have played with the dreamtime a bit, but he didn’t want to leave himself too disoriented.

Even if the other Scott had lingered, Theo wouldn’t have said anything. He stared, watching him go, then did a quick assessment of the others left aboard. No one, it seemed. He eased himself to his feet and made his way down the aisle between the rows of seats. Soon enough he was outside, grabbing the single large duffel bag that housed all of his personal effects, which mostly consisted of clothes, and not very many of those compared to the wardrobes most of his peers sported. He was in dark brown cargo shorts today, and a gray ringer tee that he’d intentionally bought a size too large in order to hide the lean muscle he’d been packing onto his frame. He’d always had strong legs, well-shaped calves, so he didn’t mind wearing the shorts quite so much. They were baggy as well, and fell to just below his knees.

Making a show of having some difficulty with the massive blue duffel bag, he swung it over the opposite shoulder of his backpack and “staggered” toward the school. He didn’t do anything more than nod to the few lingering outside, if there were any. He didn’t really care. His eyes were unfocused as he trudged deliberately into Arcana and frowned at the cluster of bodies massed around the list. Maybe he should have tried to get to it first.

Something seemed… strange. He overheard bits and pieces of conversations. When he spotted Jessica hugging Morgan, asking her to show her to their room, it clicked.

They weren’t being boarded with other Noctrem students.

They were being put with Arcana students.

He’d been mildly worried about this whole process. There were a few Noctrem boys who he would have preferred not to room with, and a smaller few more who he knew without a doubt would have proven disastrous to pair him with.

If he’d been mildly worried before, he was now on the verge of anxiety. He’d never been lucky, not once in his entire life, and he was fully expecting the same ill-luck now. I’m going to end up with him, he thought, his teeth practically grinding themselves flat as he let his eyes search out the dreaded potential roommate in question.

Relief hit him like a ten pound sledge-hammer. Landon wasn’t bee-lining him. He seemed to be waiting for something. That meant the worst possible scenario hadn’t come to pass. He would have done anything and everything in his power to get his room changed, if things had shaken out that way. Drawing a steadying breath, he dropped his bag heavily and waited for the crowd to thin a bit more before he moved forward to investigate the list. He didn’t find his name until nearly the bottom. Zac Barnes and Theodore McCaffrey. And nobody he hated too much was anywhere near him. In fact, the two people he wanted to be as distant from as possible were in the same room.

“There goes my luck for this year,” he intoned blandly, simply thinking aloud. He couldn’t have asked for a better roommate. Really, as he thought about it, Zac was the best roommate he could have been given from the pool of male Arcana students. For the first time in weeks, Theo actually looked… well, not happy, but not detached or miserable, either. He returned to his bag and lifted it with an entirely theatrical grunt, throwing out a hand to steady himself against the wall. He probably should have gone to speak with Zac, but that would have brought him past Landon, and near Colby. It was far too early to deal with either of them. He knew the way anyway. Zac could catch up with him. Without another word, the oneirokinetic teen headed off toward the dorms, to the room numbered eighteen, specifically. His progress would be slow, thanks to the show he was putting on with his duffel, but hopefully he’d manage to escape unscathed in the excitement and confusion, neither of which he felt himself.

Freya Mason


Freya tapped her foot in a bored manner as she watched the conveyer belt travelling round in a repetitive motion; arms folded against her chest, the blonde drummed her nails against her arm as her patience began to wither away. She had been stood in the same position for nearly half an hour watching as people came and went with their luggage, until finally her three large red suitcases came into view “Finally!” she exclaimed, moving forward to retrieve her luggage. Once the cases were securely on the trolley, she finally made her way through customs and then out of the bustling airport and towards the taxi rank, seeing the long queue Freya rolled her eyes, there was not a chance in hell she was going to wait. Walking to the front of the line she ignored the shouts from other people and stopped at the man at the front “Hello, mind if I take this one?” she asked with a smile.

“I don’t think so sweetheart” he replied with a chuckle.

Freya forced a smile “huh” she mumbled before placing her hand over his, smirking as his dark eyes immediately became soft “let’s try this again, can I take this cab?” she asked again.

The man immediately nodded “yeah, yeah of course you can” he said eagerly, opening the door for her like a true gentleman, causing her smirk to deepen “I can put your bag in” he added.

“Thanks love” she replied curtly before ducking into the back of the cab as the stranger, pilled her bags into the back of the car. As the boot closed the cab drove off “Where to?” the older man asked, looking back at her through the rear-view mirror. “Noc…No, Arcana Academy” she corrected herself. The drive from the airport was a rather long and tedious one, full of stopping and starting as they drove through the city, her thoughts were directed towards her old school of Noctrem and probably more importantly the fire, which had destroyed the school and killed two people, the story was that it was a reckless and random act of arson but she wasn’t sure how true that was. Freya had yet to see the damage of her old school, having been back in England at the time but people had informed her that there was very little left and she was just thankful she had taken the majority of her belongings with her back to New York and so all she lost were a few posters, a couple of DVD’s and a few items of clothing, although other people lost a lot more.

“We’re here” the cabbie spoke rousing Freya from her thoughts, turning her head towards her new school, blue eyes raked over the school, well it certainly was cheerier than Noctrem, the walls were lighter and the pink blossom trees gave it a time-gone-by look, it was nice.

After paying the driver, he helped her with her bags before driving away; she smiled at a few people in a passing, making her way into the corridor and saw people huddled around a piece of paper stuck to the wall, she figured that was the rooming list “excuse me” she said politely, pushing her way through the crowd, running her finger down the list until she came to her name…

Room Seventeen: Ashleigh Fox and Freya Mason

Shrugging, the blonde was quite content with that pairing, they got on well enough, although she hated the idea of taming down her drinking and sex around the girl, they’d definitely have to sort out a scrunchy system or something. Walking back to her cases, she could have sworn she caught a glimpse of Scott, maybe it was just wishful thinking but she pulled out her phone regardless and sent him a quick message.

Did you just ignore me Mr Andrews? ;) I’m in room 17, come find me! I’ve missed you!
-Frey xo

And then her thoughts turned to another of her good friends Jaysin, who had moved to the dark side, or rather light side a while ago and she had to admit she missed him terribly, sure they'd see each other at weekends but it wasn't the same not being able to run up to him on a daily basis and jump on his back whenever she saw him, letting out a small chuckled she scrolled down to his name and sent him a text.

Hey there traitor ;) Meet you later, I missed you and I have presents for you and Killan!

-Frey xo

Smiling she dropped her phone back into her bag and gathered her suitcases, she was about to walk off when she noticed her roommate, walking over to her a smile graced her pretty face “Hey Ash, it’s good to see you again” she greeted kindly, trying to make a good impression, after all it would be pretty shit if they didn’t get along.

Leo couldn't stop himself from smiling as the beautiful woman next to him rose up from underneath the duvet, baring her naked body to him without a care. "Good morning." He spoke, letting himself being pushed back down onto the bed, Amy leaning over the top of him. He couldn't say that he disliked the view in front of him, and for a brief moment, the male felt himself being taken back to the night before, where the woman had been practically in this position, her breasts bare and bouncing, the first time they had made love... He was however quickly brought back into the present, when the stunning woman spoke to him, asking him about sleep. "Not true. I slept a little last night, just... not as much as I probably should have." He smiled gently, bringing up his left hand to delicately brush away a strand of hair that was falling in front of her face. He had never been so happy before, never been in a position like this where he had cared about someone so much that he let them sleep next to him in his bed. Amy was the first woman that he had loved in two and a half thousand years, and he couldn't be happier about that fact.

He let his hand cup her cheek softly as she kissed him, smiling against her lips. Every little touch between them sparked electricity into the males hands, his lips, his heart. However, then, he watched her smile disappear, and he instantly knew that something was wrong. Something that she was going to tell him, and something that he was not going to like. Leo shifted slightly in the bed, raising himself up so that his head was resting against the headboard, her lips working on his jaw. He, however, didn't enjoy it as much as he should have. Instead, he was a little worried as to what Amy was going to say, and he could see that same feeling mimicked in her own eyes.

Yup, he didn't like what she had to say at all. The male closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath as she began to speak about their relationship again. She just didn't understand; she didn't get his need to abide by all rules, and especially his own. How would he look in front of Cain, in front of everyone, when they found out that he was breaking his own rules. Leo shook his head, moving out of his position from underneath her, exiting the bed. "Really Amy?" He asked her, an exasperated tone taking over his voice. "You want to do this right now? After an amazing night, and before one of the most stressful days of my life in millenniums? Really?" He took up his mobile phone from the side, angrily pressing in the buttons, his fingers missing the keys every now and again. He really wasn't the most techno-savvy person in the world, and it took him a moment to find the send button, sending his text back to Cain.

You sir, are a grammatically challenged braggard. Yes, I know about the mistake, and I don't like it any more than you do.

Leo put his phone down on the side, and moved over to the main telephone in his room, the one that if when he pressed in a number of buttons, he was able to speak over the tannoys around the school. [u]"All students, please note that there is an assembly being held at ten o'clock in the main hall. Non-attendance will result in an immediate detention, and a loss of free periods."[/s] Then, he slammed the phone back down into it's holder, turning back to face Amy. "Look, we've got to get ready. We'll talk about this later." He sighed, before making his way into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

---

[font=georgia]Erin had woken up with a bright smile on her face, unlike most of the other Noctrem students that morning. She was happy that they were leaving that god-damned motel, and moving into the Arcana Academy, a place they had been going to study for the past month or so anyway. She had no feelings about the "life long battle" or whatever that was supposed to be going on between the two academies, she didn't care about it at all. In fact, she had no qualms with any of the Arcana kids, minus ones that had offended her since her schooling life there had begun - she disliked more of the Noctrem students than those from Arcana. There was one thing on the girl's mind that morning, one thing that had the smile stuck on her face for all the world to see - and that was Keirol Rancora. The one boy who had ever wriggled his way into her heart, settling himself there for the rest of time.

As she stood there, looking into the mirror, the girl took in her appearance. The one thing that caught her eye however, was the glistening sword necklace around her neck - the one that Keirol had given her a few days prior. Her hand came up to aimlessly play with the pendant, turning it around in her fingers. The smile on her face was that of a girl in love, her eyes glazing over slightly as she went back in time to that moment on the hill. A sigh escaped her lips as she day-dreamed, still turning the locket over in her fingers. Then, a banging on her door broke her out of the trance, the girl snapping her head up quickly.

The quick movement had jolted Erin out of her daze, and into the reality of pain. Her head was throbbing as she walked towards the door, rubbing at her temple softly to try and rid herself of the drink-induced headache. Of course, Cor had been the one who had gotten her drunk, the one who had literally forced her to down her brother's bottle of vodka, despite the fact she despised the drink. She took in a few deep breaths before opening the door, before the whirlwind began. Cor had been there to shift her into gear, and within in the minute, the two girls were downstairs, shoving their bags into the bus and sitting down next to each other.

The bus journey to Arcana Academy had been another blur for Erin, letting her head loll softly on top of Cor's, slipping in and out of sleep. The headache was progressively getting worse, and somewhere deep down, she felt like slapping her best friend for forcing her to letting her drink so much. Soon, the bus was pulling to a stop, and the two girls were exiting, hand in hand, being one of the first to collect their bags. No-one really messed with Cor, and Erin was guilty due to association. She chuckled at the sarcasm in Cor's voice as they walked into the school, taking in a deep breath. She moved away from her blonde best friend, her eyes glancing over at the crowds of people beginning to swarm the reception. She was hoping to see Keirol, to pick him out of the crowd, but he didn't seem to be there. She spotted the speedy guy coming in to check the board, Colby, she believed his name was, and she witnessed the sickening sitaution between Drake and Addison. The girl physically grimaced as she looked upon the scene, before Cor's voice again hit her ears. Addi deserves so much better. She thought to herself, before turning around to see what had gotten her friend so het up.

There was a defnite reason, all right. As Erin's eyes scanned the list of roommates in front of her, her expression turned quizical, before turning angry. She wasn't "angry angry", but she was definitely irritated. "What the fuck?" She repeated Cor's words, her mouth hanging open slightly as she realized that the two schools had been mixed. "We're not rooming together? Well, this just turns everything on it's fucking head, doesn't it?" She sighed loudly. When she found her name, and saw that she was rooming with Loralei Evans, the gypsy girl, she shrugged. "I don't mind. It's better than say... rooming with darling little Lulu or sickly sweet Ashleigh." Erin forced a laugh, but it soon turned to a real one when she saw who Jay was rooming with. "Oh, c'mon, it's not that bad." She put her arm around her friend's shoulders, sarcasm lacing every word that escaped her lips. "Come on, they may even... become friends?" Then, the girl burst out laughing, turning to apologize to her friend "Oh, I'm sorry Cor. That's just... oh, that's going to make your life fun." She grinned.

"So," Erin spoke, the grin once again evident on her face, turning to face Cor, "what shall we do until this stupid assembly?"

---

Tears fell softly onto the bed as Jackson stood there, holding his precious baby daughter in his hands. She was the most beautiful thing that he had ever seen, the one thing that shined so brightly in his life. Holly Millicent Murphy, a little girl with a head of soft brunette locks, and the most beautiful blue eyes in the entirety of the world, inherited from her mother. Jack slowly looked up, looking over at his girlfriend, smiling with largest smile ever at her. She looked so weak, so tired, but so beautiful. He moved over to sit next to her, holding Holly in one arm, and wrapping his other around Beth. The two of them looked down at the life they had created, their smiles never falling from their faces.

However, the scene soon changed. The room turned dark, and Jackson snapped his head up, the smile falling from his face, wondering what was going on. He wasn't in the hospital any more, he was in Beth's bedroom, still in that same position, his arm wrapped around Beth, however, Holly was in her arms this time. Tears were falling down his face, but he couldn't move his lips to ask her what was wrong. He knew something bad was going to happen, something terrible, but he just couldn't think as to what it could be. Then, his daughter stopped moving. She turned a horrible shade of grey, loosing all colour in her skin, but Jackson couldn't move. All he could hear was Beth screaming, tears falling down his own face landing on his daughter's pale face. They were then in a car, him holding Holly. She was cold, and she wasn't moving; all Jack wanted to do was to touch his daughter properly, to hold her close, hug her and kiss her, but he just couldn't move. He couldn't do anything as they arrived at the hospital, and Holly was taken out of his arms. The same word was then repeated over and over again, resounding in the male's ears.

Dead.

Dead.

Dead.

Dead!

Jack's eyes snapped open, and he flung up in his bed. His breath was hard and ragged, his heart pounding at a thousand miles an hour. He hadn't had a dream about Holly and Beth for a number of months, and it took him a moment to realize why his past was coming back to haunt him once again. Beth Phillips was now a student here, or had been for the past month - and he hadn't noticed. He had only wondered about her being a student at Arcana when he had heard her name floating around in the corridors. He couldn't believe that she was here, coming back into his life, in such a place as his school. It wasn't as if he didn't want her here... well, that might not be in the case. He didn't want his ex girlfriend, and the mother of his dead child here... but there was absolutely nothing that he could do about it, was there?

He spent a maximum of ten minutes in the shower, letting the warm water wash away all of the sweat and worries from his dream. It didn't take him long to get dressed or ready either, wearing this plain, yet smart outfit, smelling like his favourite cologne, his hair styled in his usual damp mess. He wasn't much of a conformer, but he had decided to go down to the reception hall anyways this morning, to look at the roommate list that had been posted up. Just after he had left his room, he received a text. Pulling out his iPhone, Jack checked his messages, smiling as he saw Lulu's name appearing. The male made his way down to the reception hall, instantly spotting the blonde that had been his best friend through the hardest times in his life.

Instead of going to check his new roommate, he made a beeline for Lulu, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind, a bright smile on his face as he pressed his lips to her hair, a soft, friendly peck. "I'm here." He grinned, moving so that he was now standing in front of her, pulling her into a proper hug this time[u]. "It's great to see you again, Lu."

Scott Martin Andrews

“Room 6” Scott kept repeating to himself, he had almost forgot his own room number.

There was a map at the entrance, but Scott didn’t pay interest to the map, but the scrap of paper that resulted on who he would be living with. Because of his terrible memory, he found himself walking around the school looking for the dorms. There were so many places that Scott felt tempted to go too. There was a gym-room, which Scott would probably spend half of his free-time in. They had there own swimming pool, which he had to admit looked really cool. He made his way to the second floor, and without even having to consider, he knew immediately that the dorms were here. He followed the numbers until he reached 6. Beside his room were 5 and 7, and if he could recall, Corentine was in room 7. Scott stood still, imagining him late at night, making his way to her room so that they could do there “daily routine.” Scott shook his head and entered his room laughing. It was better then he had expected.

There were two large queen bed’s that sat beside each other. There was two thick mirrors that hovered above each bed. Scott as himself, started to flex his muscles at his reflection. One bed was already occupied with stuff, such as books and clothes and he already knew that was Izzy’s. There was a closet that was big enough to live in and a washroom that was amazing. Scott moved his bed closer to the window. He begins to recklessly scattering his things almost everywhere maybe just to piss of Izzy but Scott wanted to go and eat, he was starving. The speakers began to buzz and a teacher begins to speak. An assembly at 10? Scott turned toward the clock and It was already 8:30. He wanted to fit in a good hour of working out before the assembly. Scott left the rest of his things on his bed and opens up his phone because he had received a message.

He mumbled her name under his breath.

Did you just ignore me Mr. Andrews? ;) I’m in room 17, come find me! I’ve missed you!
-Freyxo

For a moment Scott’s heart had dropped. Stupid, Why didn’t you make your move? He kept telling himself. You should have made your way over to her when you had the chance. Scott frowned, his mind still continued to torment him. He replied as fast as he could. He was going to kiss her, it was time for him to profess his love for Freya either way.

I‘ll be heading your way
-Scotty

Room 17 was all the way at the end of the hall, and it looked like no one was here except for Scott himself so he made his way down to the first floor where everyone was. Everyone was still outside, crowding the small piece of paper that hangs on the entrance. Frey was still outside too, she was chatting with Ashleigh, who is probably her room-mate. Scott moved closer and closer to both of them but then finally something took over. He grabbed Freya by the waist, spinning her around. Without even the consideration that both of them were talking, Scott didn’t care, he wanted to kiss Frey and he did so. Without hesitation, Scott kisses Frey. He carefully pushes her strangling blond streaks of hair behind her ear and presses his lips on top of hers once more, his face still an itch away from hers.

“I’ve been wanting to do that for such a long time” He says in a low whisper. As awkward as it is, Ash was still right there. Scott took a step back but still held onto Frey’s hand.
“Right so I’m going to let you guy’s go back to what you were doing, I’ll see you both at the assembly.” He lets go of her hand and shoots out a playful smirk and quickly runs off back inside.

Lulu had thought herself to be one of the first in the reception hall but within minutes the place was swarming with students. Standing slightly aside, she slid her hoodie from her head, her blond hair frizzing slightly on top. Unzipping it, she revealed her outfit. She moved to smooth her hair, watching people from the corner of the room. Corentine and Erin were reading the list of roommates, with Erin cursing and rolling her eyes at the fact that they weren’t together. It didn’t please her either that she would not longer be in a single room as she had been in Noctrem, not entirely about privacy but more so about what she would likely bring with her and thus upon Alli.

The blond student was so focused on other people, she didn’t hear her friend approach her from behind. The moment Jack’s hands wrapped around her waist she tensed, her shoulders tucking into her neck and her hands immediately flying to grab his. Her toes curled in her shoes until she felt his gentle peck on the crown of her hair. "I'm here!" Jack announced. Lulu couldn’t help but smile. Her long time best friend moved to hug her properly, which of course she did. "It's great to see you again, Lu," he told her. Lulu looked at him in the eyes, seeing the tired quality to his face.

“You look as tired as I do!” she commented, rubbing a thumb on his chin while she pursed her lips. “We’ll be insomniacs together!”

As she moved, watching another girl crash into Drake – he really was a magnet for those kinds of people wasn’t he – Arcana’s headmaster suddenly made an announcement via the PA. “All students, please note that there is an assembly being held at ten o'clock in the main hall. Non-attendance will result in an immediate detention, and a loss of free periods.”

“Is it me or does he sound a little peeved?” Lulu wondered aloud, her eyebrows momentarily creasing before she shrugged away her concern. So long as Leo was agreeable when she dropped in on his office hours, she wouldn’t pick away at him. He was old and irritated, concerned with Cain – as he had expressed to her before. Lulu’s eyes wandered back over to her mentor momentarily to see him smirking at his phone. Lingering cigarette smoke made the air thick around him. She didn’t care for that part of him but he was one of the only teachers capable of really pushing her to excel, to push her powers. Unfortunately she wondered if he noticed how hungover she looked from it, their session yesterday having run rather late. Lulu could feel the heaviness in her shoulders and a tired quality to her eyes. No doubt they were bloodshot. Her head spun when she turned around too quickly to try and locate where the main hall was or where she had to go to get there. Lulu reached out to grab Jack’s shoulder. “Sorry,” she muttered. “Power hangover. Some caffeine may help,” she explained, knowing he would understand.

Morgan Janssen

Morgan's arms were still sore from carrying Alli in. That girl wasn't big. In fact, she was short and built like a stick. But she was surprisingly heavy. She seemed to be better now, anyway. "I'd better go down and see if Jess is in yet." Mo said, standing up. Alli stood up. "I'm fine now, I'm coming too." She insisted. Mo shrugged. Zac grinned. She made her way downstairs and went to stand in a spot where she was sure Jess could see her. It appeared to be a good choice of spot, because moments later, Jess made her way over. Mo hugged her. "Wow, I can't believe we're roomies! Come on! It's room Eleven." She waved goodbye to Alli and Zac and shot upstairs. She made her way down the corridor, stopping in front of her room. She had to start thinking of it as their room. Their room. She opened the door and sat on her bed. "Welcome to Room Eleven! The bathroom's over there. You can have the desk that's relatively tidy. I'm a bit of a slob, so I'm hoping you don't have much of a problem with untidiness." She said to Jess. Her phone vibrated on her desk. She crossed the room and picked it up.

Hey sweetie. Good luck with your new roommate. If it's someone you don't like, tell Mr Marinos that I'll pay for any damages. Dad. x

She grinned and crossed back over to her bed. Her dad was definitely the person who knew her best. Her mom had understood her pretty well, until the shooting. But her dad had always, always known when she was sad, even if she looked positively ecstatic. He always texted her in full sentences. He despised poor grammar, a characteristic he had passed onto Mo.

Hey Dad. It's okay, you can put the chequebook away. I'm rooming with Jess Coleman, someone I actually like! Thanks for the good wishes anyway. Arcana should remain standing for another few days. Mo. xx

She left her phone down on the bed, still smiling. "Okay, Jess, so spill. Roomies have to share everything. Any crushes? Teachers included." She said, grinning at the other girl. "I don't have anything to tell you, but Alli let something slip earlier. So, come on. I'll tell you." She sat cross-legged on the bed and played with her hands.

Her mind, however, wasn't on the tidbits that she was hopefully about to get from Jess. It was on her eight-year old self. She could remember sitting on the stairs, watching her parents argue.

"Well, who is it then?" "I've told you before, Karen, I'm not having an affair!" "You're late home from work every single evening!" "Because I'm working overtime! You want Mo to be happy, don't you?" "Don't you dare bring Mo into this." "Well, she's the reason I wouldn't have an affair! You know I love her too much! I would never leave her!" "No, you'd take her with you!" She covered her ears and flew upstairs to bed. Other kids only had to worry about their scraped knees. She had to worry about her parents splitting up.

Mo snapped back to the present. Her grin was still fixed in place, but she felt like she was about to burst into tears. She was always like this coming up to the anniversary of her mother's death. It was almost ten years now, but Mo still missed her terribly.

She was glad when the announcement came on, because it took the focus away from her. She quickly rubbed her eyes and hoped her eyeliner didn't run.



Zac watched as Mo flew up the stairs to her room, tailed by Jess. That girl was insane sometimes. The smell of cigarettes was foul. He looked around for Theo. He appeared to making his way up to the room. Zac searched the reception until he found who he was looking for. He went up behind her and grabbed Ashy in a hug from behind. "Hey, Ashy. Found out who your roomie is yet?" He said, releasing her. "I'm rooming wtih Theo. I'd like to apologise in advance. We could very well be debating until all hours." He said. "Right, I'd better go up." He grinned at her, before heading upstairs.

Him and Ashy had bonded the very first day they had met. They knew practically everything about each other. Except... Zac had never told Ashy about his past. He was worried she would worry unneccesarily, and he done enough of that for both of them. He had just told her he was in a foster home because both of his parents had been killed in a car accident. In reality, his father had been killed when a rookie police officer had been a bit too trigger happy in a hostage situation, and his mother was off the radar. He hated his mother. She had left them when he was four, and had never come back. Not even when his father had started his... Little business. Not even when his father had been killed. Not even when Zac had been taken into a foster home.

Zac caught up with Theo along the corridor leading to the dorms. He laughed at the show he was putting on with his blue duffel bag. "Ah, come on now. We both know that's not that heavy." He said, grinning at him. "Here we go. Room Eighteen." He said, throwing the door wide open. "Mind the drums. And if you find any picks lying around, they're probably mine." He listened to the announcement. "Right. You can do what you want, I'm going to get something to eat. I'm bloody starving. And I won't be able to make everyone forget if my stomach rumbles during assembly."

As he was heading downstairs, he tried not to think about the hell that awaited him in the next few days. At least he didn't have roommate problems to add to that list. But it was a rough time for Mo. He would have even more of Skylar to handle. He would have to avoid the mind-reader even more at this point. Morgan didn't want anybody to know about what time of year it was for her, because she didn't want to be smothered in sympathy. The Noctrem students would make fun of her, saying she should get over it. He completely trusted Ellie not to spill, but the Noctrem students could be slimy little bastards. And he just wanted Morgan to be relatively happy. She hadn't told anybody about him, so he wouldn't tell anybody about her.

Alli Jackson

Alli listened carefully to the announcement. Her ankle still ached, but not as much. She looked around and spotted Lulu. She was about to go over, but then somebody else caught her eye. Scott Andrews.

No way. No freaking way. He went to Noctrem?! Oh my God, he's here!" Before they had went their seperate ways, they had been inseperable. There was nothing romantic between them, but they had been best friends. He had came to her when he needed support, and she had went to him when she was completely pissed at her parents. She had told him she was going to Arcana. He had told her the name of his school. It hadn't stood out to her at the time, but now she remembered it as Noctrem. A look of pure elation appeared on her face. "Scott! Scott Andrews!" Before she knew it, her ankle was forgotten and she was flying across the room for a hug. She wrapped her arms around them. He had definitely grown taller in the three years they had been apart.

"I cannot believe you're here! I thought you were going to school abroad or something. Come on! Let's go catch up over breakfast!" She grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the cafeteria. "Who are you rooming with? I can't believe they put us with Noctrem students. I'm with Lulu Allen. She's not bad. She's certainly better than Corentine or somebody. Can I ask, does 'Fuck up' make any sense to you? Because she has no problem with saying that to me." She was so excited. She could not wait to tell Lauryn about this.

She saw Zac sitting at a table in the cafeteria. She grinned at him and dragged Scott over to the table. "Zac Zac Zac!" She said. "Guess what?" He looked mildly stunned. "Scott's here! Me and Scott used to be best friends, but then he went to Noctrem and I came to Arcana, but now he's here!" He grinned. "I'm guessing you're excited about that." He said, looking at Scott. "Yeah! Yeah, I am." She sat down. "Who are you rooming with?" She asked Zac, finally taking her attention away from Scott. She hoped with all her being that he'd say Scott, but she was disappointed. "Theo McCaffery." He said, grinning even wider. "Oh. Oh well. If you have nightmares, you'll know who to blame." She said, trying to hide her disappointment. Zac laughed. She guessed it was at her.

When Erin made a comment about the rooms being mixed, Cor smiled wryly, “damn right it does,” she noted, shaking her head. She raised an eyebrow when Erin merely shrugged at rooming with Lora. “Fuck that,” she said, rolling her eyes, “she’s a little Marinos-puppet and you know it.” In truth, maybe she hated Lora primarily because she’d spotted Jay’s clone practically following her around at times, and she didn’t like how his attention was wandering so much. It wasn’t just gypsy girl, it was others too. Even Addie, Jade and Bells. Her friends. And she’d damn well noted some looks back. It bothered her more than anything, but as long as it was no more than looking, she could deal. Sort of. What she couldn’t take, was his relationship with Freya. Friends? Fine. Kissing? Not so fine, and then he had the nerve to ask her to fucking trust him. She hadn’t had a chance to talk it over with him much yesterday, because he’d distracted her with sex… a lot. She’d skipped English as usual and met up with Jay, but this time it had been more than a quick fuck somewhere.

This time she’d finally been in his room. He’d told her how much he loved her, how much he wanted her. Told her she was the only one he wanted an he’d made love to her in a bed for the first time in over two years. Then they’d left the grounds for lunch and, well… the day had passed with just the two of them, wrapped up in each other. He still wanted her to drop her fuck-buddies, but she wasn’t giving him anything serious until she knew she could trust him. Back at Arcana, Jay had only had eyes for her. He’d never even looking at others with want like he did now. Now, however, he was still with his girlfriend while fucking Cor and flirting with others. ”What can I do to prove that you can trust me, Cor?” he’d asked as she was on his lap yesterday, but she hadn’t answered him. Today she was cursing herself, thinking she should have told him to prove that he could be with her alone. No sideways glances. She knew he wasn’t the Jay she’d dated, but she hated that this particular side of him had changed because she still loved him.

She shook out of her metaphorically Jay-induced coma when she saw who he was rooming with and made a comment. It was just too hilarious. Bells chose that moment to stop by and Cor grinned at her, “oh, you know… rooms.” She said in reply to her friend’s words. Then turned to look at Erin again. Her comments made Cor laugh and she shook her head, “sure, and then the moon fell from the sky and they lived happily ever after,” she finished the ‘story’ her friend was weaving. She smiled wryly shaking her head when Erin apologized. “Oh, fuck this. They’re going to kill each other.” That when Sky’s comment reached and she whirled around with a mischievous smile on her lips. “Have a look,” she told him, still laughing, and she only laughed harder at his reaction, Spanish mixing with his words. “Oh, baby, it’s not that bad. Erin was just telling me how you two might bond over this.” At the comment, she only laughed harder. Sky added a “whatever” and walked away. She called out, “don’t forget to give him a big hug, love!” She smirked.

Then Leo’s voice rang out over speakers, and Cor rolled her eyes. As if you’re going to do anything if I don’t show, you fucking pussy, she thought to herself, smirking visibly. Pussy, oh, wasn’t that ironic. She blinked a couple of times when Erin spoke, then shrugged, grinning. “You know, I think we need a guide. I don’t want to carry these suitcases around all day, and I don’t suppose Kei’s up as he’s not getting a roommate, sooo… walk with me? I’ll just bet you Jay the Jerk isn’t up yet either, but he’s going to be. On that note, I have a shitload of info for you.” She said as she began walking, knowing that Erin would tag along. “Remember how I texted you that I wasn’t riding the bus with you guys? And I wasn’t home until 8:30 pm and all? Well, I was with him.” She couldn’t keep the happiness out of her voice. Jay made her heart beat faster. He was the only guy who had and would ever have power over her.

Cor headed for the second floor, riding the elevator with Erin, “it was a fucking weird day, if you ask me,” she said, shaking her head at the memories, “mostly because it wasn’t just sex.” She glanced at her friend, smiling wryly, “yeah, I know… it’s pretty crazy.” She laughed a little. She and Jay had been strictly “fuck and leave” until yesterday, and she hadn’t had a chance to be alone with Erin really until now so she hadn’t relayed any of the new information. “He’s such a fucking asshole, and I don’t trust him for shit… but he’s still got me.” She turned her eyes skyward. “And I have no clue in hell how I feel about it.” With that, the ping of the elevator signaled that they could exit on the second floor, so Cor hurried out, looking around her. These halls would be swarming with people in a little bit and she didn’t want to risk anyone hearing her talk about having feelings for a guy. Jay was a weakness.

Soon, they reached the door Cor knew belonged to Jay (at least she’d found that out yesterday), and she knocked, pondering if she should just barge in there, but she didn’t really want Erin possibly seeing Jay naked, which was so fucking ridiculous. “Baby?” She called merely, knowing he’d recognize her voice.

---

Drake turned his head when someone bumped into him, smiling when he noticed Lulu. However, the smile turned into a slight frown as she scurried off without a word in his direction. It was so weird. Ever since Noctrem had burned down, he and Lulu had been sliding further and further apart, like something was causing a distance now that they were no longer able to have their nightly talks. He missed them a little, honestly. He missed Lulu’s company when he couldn’t sleep in the night. The way she’d poke her head out and tell him to go back to his room with a glass of milk. Really, it had become more of a greeting than a wish on her part after a little while; after he’d refused enough times. Of course, he couldn’t just refuse either, so he’d begun asking her to join him, and she had. The evening ritual had gone on for whoever knew how long before Noctrem burned. Now he was more or less alone in the night. He didn’t much mind solitary, really, but he’d rather have her company than not.

Thinking about it, maybe she was avoiding him because of the girls; his sister mostly, probably. Cor was a force to be reckoned with; Drake knew that better than anyone, and if accompanied by her bitch squad, as he liked to call them – in his mind, she was even worse. Back-up was not something one should issue to psychopaths. Not much long after, he heard a ”shit” from behind and glanced over to see Kali. He grinned but she too was running off before he got a chance to say anything. He was starting to feel like he smelled or something, what with everyone fleeing his presence. Geez. Or maybe it was just sort of amusing. Okay, it was very amusing. Mostly because he knew why. How could he take it personally? Everyone knew he was great, and he was positive he’d used cologne this morning, anyway. He was drawn back into reality when Addie shook her head and he grinned. “Of course you are,” he said. “You’d be in there looking at roommates if you didn’t have to calm your nerves with a smoke.” He teased. Of course he couldn’t be sure, but he thought Addie might’ve misunderstood his question. Oh well.

When Addie commented on him smoking, Drake laughed. “My ‘mama’ practically tossed them at me. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she wanted me to die sooner.” Of course no one at the Academy actually knew how strained his relationship with his parents was, but he’d never felt the need to tell them either, so it wasn’t public knowledge. He knew Cor wasn’t going to tell people. Not because she respected his right to tell that stuff himself. Oh no, Cor just liked it better when people considered him more of a mystery. At least he thought that was why. What the hell did he know? His sister was a fucking mess. Image was one thing, among many, he’d never really cared about, as oppose to his blonde baby sis. His eyes took a round of the area he was in and spotted Erin looking at him and Addie, making a face. He chuckled, winking at her. It was completely ridiculous, really. She fucked him more often than most of the girls he had ‘intimate relations’ with, yet she didn’t think he was good enough for any of her friends. Good thing he wasn’t really interested in dating any of them. He just liked sex, and flirting. But most of all he liked the company of women. What was so wrong about that? He didn’t need to have sex with them to like talking to them, or just looking at them, really.

Drake let go of Addie when he felt her wiggling out of his embrace, shot her a wry smile in reply to her ‘goodbye’, and watched her ass as she walked inside. He wasn’t a pervert as such. He just recognized good craftsmanship, really, and her parents had done wonderfully, he had to admit. Kudos to them. Then he smiled to himself and picked up his big duffel bag, mulling over his options now. He could go check out the list of roommates, annoy his sister a little and maybe find something (or someone) interesting to do, but eh… he wasn’t much in the mood. He did want to lose the bag though, so he supposed he’d have to go inside sooner or later. His eyes ran over the people already there. Maybe he could locate Lulu and get her alone. He was sick of his sister scaring people off. Or maybe just sick of her scaring Lulu specifically away. Of course Lulu only had herself to blame for Cor’s open hostility towards her, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t hang out? Since when did Cor have anything to say about the people he associated with? In reality, he liked being around people she didn’t like, just to tic her off.

Then again, he didn’t want to get Lulu into more trouble. Very few people were as targeted by Cor as Lulu. Actually, he was fairly certain Lulu was the only girl hated by every single one of Cor’s bitches. That was a first, and he couldn’t help being a little impressed with her. Not a lot of girls had the guts to. He shook his head, scratching the back of his neck. Why did he even give a shit? That’s when he spotted Lora and noted that his sister and Erin had skipped off to wherever. Destination decided. Drake made his way inside, easily slipping through the crowd despite his size and his bag. He paused by the list of rooms and raised an eyebrow. Noctrem/Arcana rooming? His face lit into an amused, mischievous grin, his mood improving immediately. Well this changed the game entirely – and made it all the more entertaining. He chuckled to himself when he saw that he’d be living with Colby, but the laugh died down when he noticed they’d used his full name. Seriously? He was pretty sure he hadn’t told anyone at Arcana his full name. Ah, bugger. He hated his name. Shaking off the slight irritation, Drake moved through the next line of people and headed for Lora.

He made his way over just as Leo’s announcement rang out – which he more or less ignored – , and wrapped her in a tight hug, grinning down at her. “Did you grow taller since yesterday?” He teased her. It had become a joke since she’d grown so much since he’d last befriended her in Harrogate, a couple of months before his going to Noctrem, and since they’d started going to school at Arcana, they’d more or less re-established that friendship. With a fuck-load of attraction on top of it. For once, however, Drake was fighting his womanizing tendencies. Lora was one girl who was going to stay just a friend. He’d decided that much. No fucking this up. Excuse the pun.

* Amy will be added in a bit. =D