Chapter 138
And Then There Were Four
Chapter 138: First Day of School Cassie.
When Trixie said she was going to be at my room early, I had no idea it was going to be before the sun even rose. I tried my hardest to ignore her persistent knocking, but in the end, she let herself into my room and forced me from bed.
âRemind me again why we are up so early,â I groaned as I took my brush to my hair, trying to tame the wavy locks which seemed to have a mind of their own.
Trixie laughed at my comment as she stood from my bed and walked towards the open bathroom doorway. She had been insistent on waiting for me to finish in the shower and get dressed. Proclaiming I would go back to sleep if left alone.
âBecause breakfast is in thirty minutes, and our first class is in an hour. Now stop messing around. Youâre lucky Iâm agreeing to you wearing jeans.â
Glancing out the bathroom door, I stared at her before rolling my eyes. âI donât even eat breakfast.â The grumbled response caused Trixie to groan.
âStop, just brush your damn teeth so we can go.â
My mouth dropped open upon hearing Trixieâs annoyance. I hadnât known her for long, but in that time, I had never heard her get annoyed like she was now. Cocking a brow, I stared at her as a slow smile spread across my face. âWas that annoyance?â
She stared blankly, her eyes unmoving before a snort of laughter escaped her. âOh, my God. Just come on already. I want coffee-â
âWait, you guys have coffee here?â I asked, cutting her off, more than excited about getting coffee and perhaps using it to survive the day. My question seemed to shock her as she stared at me as if I had grown a second head.
âUh-yeah. Donât you guys have that in the human realm?â
Opening and closing my mouth, I placed the brush upon the counter and nodded. âYeah, we do. Sorry, I guess part of me just thought this place would be super different.â
Glancing back at Trixie as I moved from the bathroom, I headed towards my bed where my small backpack sat waiting patiently for me to collect. I contemplated what else I would uncover here that was similar to my old home.
âSo about this coffee, there wouldnât happen to be donuts too, would there?â
Slinging my bag over my shoulder, Trixie grabbed her stuff as we made our way out of my bedroom. A wide smile spread across her face as she gave me a knowing glance which all but answered my question. âWhatâs your favorite flavor?â
I wasnât sure what I had expected going to this school, but it definitely wasnât to walk up to a massive gothic building amongst the white marbled structures that surrounded it and be hit with the feelings of overwhelming chaos. It was beautiful with itâs stained glass windows and high arches which swirled with elegant mason work raising the roof high into the heavens.
My breath was taken away, and as I let my eyes take in the area, I was truly taken aback by the lush green gardens, peaked tops of a large glass greenhouse in the distance, and mass amounts of decorated ponds with waterfalls. The place reminded me so much of a high fantasy castle the only thing missing as the flying dragon and damsel in distress.
âCassie, are you coming?â Trixie called out from ahead of me, snapping me back to the present. I had stopped walking and stood in shock staring at the surrounding area I hadnât even paid attention to her continuing without me.
âYeah, sorry. I was just-taking it all in.â
She let her glowing green eyes gaze around the area, taking in everything I myself was admiring, but as she did a puzzled look crossed her face before she turned back to me. âI guess I can see why you would find it pretty. Iâm so used to looking at it I donât even notice it like that anymore.â
Moving towards her, I felt nothing but shock in her words.
How could she not want to admire this place all the time? Itâ
s beautiful.
âYouâre crazy. Iâd admire this place every moment of the day.â
Letting a small smirk of amusement escape her, she shrugged her shoulders. âMaybe, but without coffee? I donâ t think so.â
Coffee⦠It was my best friend and comfort to survive anything.
Something my mother and I had in common. âLead the way⦠I need like four cups.â
âFour cups?â Trixie laughed. âWhy do you need so many?â
Staring at her with my mouth parting, I shook my head. âTo get through today. How else do you expect me to be nice to anyone? Itâs better to caffeinate me to make me cheerful otherwise Iâm likely to bring this whole place down.â
âYeah, okay letâs not do that.â She smirked as we passed through the large burnt red and black wooden doors accented with black iron that went from the ground high up above me. The door had to have been at least twenty feet high, a little excessive in my opinion but to think about how they made that was pretty amazing.
The moment we passed the doors, I was stopped in my tracks once more. Outside there hadnât been many people wandering around, but the moment I stepped inside, the building people were everywhere. It reminded me of the college my parentâs went to I had toured my senior year of high school.
There was no rhyme or reason to the chaos, but one distinct difference between them all was they didnât look quite like the people I had known in the human realm. Most looked human-like which was nice, but others had brightly colored hair, gold shimmering accents, and most of all- wings.
âTrixie⦠that pink-haired girl has wings.â
They werenât the glittering wings someone would have initially thought of when you say wings, and they werenât exactly feathered either. They were red and white and though there were scattered feathers throughout, they were also almost fur-like. An odd look for someone who was supposed to fly.
âOh, her?â Trixie replied with a sigh. âYeah, thatâs Cersei. She has Griffin in her, and honestly, I donât see how but donât get too close to that one. She is a bit⦠unstable.â
Trixie wasnât someone who typically said bad things about anyone, and hearing her say this girl was unstable, and I was best to basically stay clear from her was shocking.
âNoted.â
Pulling me along behind her, Trixie took me down various hallways lined with photos, and floral decor, dark wood floors lining wall to wall. Every inch of the place I admired until we approached the dining hall as she explained and I was taken back by how many people actually filled it.
Tables upon tables littered the massive hall adorned with black, white, and red table clothes. Floral centerpieces with strange flowers I had never seen before, not to mention the awesome black steel candle hanging candle chandelier sitting massively in the center of the room.
As soon as I entered the room with Trixie all eyes fell upon me.
Being put on the spot like wasnât something I enjoyed. And as I followed Trixie past the vast amount of people lingering about their tables eating breakfast and drinking coffee, among other things, I took note of the brightly colored hair, eyes, and even tails which adorned some of the figures.
Even though they were different from the type of people I was used to, I could see couples, best friends, and what appeared to be siblings.
âYou keep staring like you have been, Cassie, and someone is likely to think you, weird.â
Weird⦠I was weird. I had been called weird and dangerous my entire life and though I played it out by acting like I didnât care, truth be told, deep down I really did. I just was very good at not letting people see my emotions.
Hiding was something I did well.
âIâm not worried about what people think,â I replied with a grin as I nudged her with my shoulder. âNow, whereâs this coffee? As pretty as it is here, I need coffee before anyone else comes to speak to me.â
As the giggle escaped her, we made our way towards a small bar area in the far back right corner of the hall where a pretty brunette with golden eyes stood handing out cups of drinks to students in line. The entire place seemed like an upscale resort with the way staff seemed to maintain everything, at least from what I had seen so far.
âWhat can I get you ladies today?â The brunette woman said with a razor sharp smile. Her fanged teeth caught me off guard as my eyes widened in surprise by the sight of them. I hadnât meant to stare, but when she frowned at me I quickly realized I was.
âIâm sorry⦠I just-Iâll take a coffee with cream, no sugar, please.â
The womanâs smile was shy, but she gave me a knowing look which had nothing but amusement dancing within her eyes. âItâs okay. You must be Cassie, the new girl.â
Surprised she knew who I was, I nodded slowly, and glanced at Trixie who shrugged her shoulders. âI am.â As she handed my coffee I continued down the line with Trixie towards where the spread of food sat upon platters. Heaps of meat, fruit, and breads. Enjoy food to feed an army, but instead simply feed a bunch of shifters.
âCassie, youâre awfully quiet for someone who wouldnât stop talking yesterday.â
Glancing up at Trixie once more, I sighed, shrugging my shoulders. âItâs not that I mean to be quiet, Iâm just taking all of this in⦠Itâs a little-â
âOverwhelming?â she replied finishing my sentence.
âYeah, something like that.â I nodded as we turned and made our way towards an empty table. I didnât want to seem awkward, but shit⦠this place was more than overwhelming and honestly, I just wanted to go back to bed.
âTrixie!â an annoyingly sweet voice said with a slight bit of amusement. I watched Trixieâs shoulders tense for a moment before we both turned and took in the overly prideful figure of a girl with golden blonde hair and fiery golden red eyes. âIs this her?â
âAm I the new girl?â I asked, causing the girlâs eyes to widen as a smile spread across her face. She didnât seem to expect my outburst but frankly I didnât care. I had only just arrived here and currently I felt like an animal at the zoo with how everyone kept looking at me.
âThis is Cassie,â Trixie replied quickly, giving me a wide eyed look to stop talking.
âCassieââ the girl purred with a grin. âWell, Cassie, Iâm Ambrozia but everyone calls me Zia. If you ever need anything donât hesitate to ask. Iâd love it if we could be friends.â
It was more than obvious this girl was only acting the way she was because she wanted something, and if there was one thing I hated more than being stared at-was fake ass people with secret agendas.
âThanks,â I replied, trying to tame the disgust brewing at the bottom of my stomach. âBut I think Trixie has everything covered.â
âExcuse me?â Zia scoffed, placing her hands on her hips.
âThatâs a bit rude.â
I nodded my head in agreement with a smile before crossing my arms over my chest. She wasnât wrong. It was rude, but it was intended to be. âSo is being fake just to make yourself look better.â
I hadnât planned to come here and start problems but it seemed like this girl thought to highly of herself. âYouâre going to regret that decision.â
âPerhaps.â I laughed while taking a seat at the table. âI guess we will wait and see.â
It didnât take Zia long to get the hint and disappear and as she did, Trixie sat next to me with her mouth wide open in complete shock over what I had just done. âNo one talks to her like that.â
âMaybe no.. But she wonât get me with her fake shit.â