Chapter 3

Chapter 3

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I take my map of the school out of the small pocket of my backpack, staring down at it and trying to find the library. I find it rather quickly, for on the map it looks like one of the largest rooms in the school, even larger than the dining hall. It’s at the very end of the school on the first floor, taking up a great portion of the map. I think to myself How am I even going to find Nathaniel in this Titanic of libraries?

I decide to worry about that when I get there and trail my fingers along the hallways and following them. After a scary ride on the lift, a couple turns and a lot of walking later, I reach the doors to the library. On the doors is a large, golden plaque reading Van Fascino Library. The doors are smaller than the dining room, which is strange considering the library is larger. They stand to be about four feet taller than me, whereas the dining hall doors go all the way to the ceiling.

I push the double doors open and walk through them, they swing shut behind me. I stop dead in my tracks and my mouth flies open.

The library is beautiful, but that word doesn’t even begin to describe it. There are rows upon rows of books, all of them reaching up to the ceiling and continuing, golden plaques labeling the genre of books. There are multiple white and golden spiral staircases lead up to the platforms on the walls. The ceiling doesn’t go all the way across, but instead in balconies and bridges across the first floor, all of them with bookshelves of their own. There are multiple chestnut wooden tables that reflect the golden light from more orbs of light that float around a lot like in the dining hall. There’s some kids sitting at them, reading, working on computers or doing homework with papers spread out on the table. There are also some sitting in groups on burgundy bean bags. Off to the side, near the door is the front desk where a woman stands, looking like a stereotypical librarian with her gray hair put up neatly in a bun, narrow glasses and lips pursed together like she had eaten a lemon, looking for children that dare make a noise too loud.

Once I get over my shock I move around to try and find Nathaniel. I stroll through the rows of books, looking down at each table. Most kids are sitting in groups of two to six. I look up above me and see kids walking across the balconies and bridges, having a sudden terrifying thought of one of them falling down on top of me.

After searching and searching, I start to think What if he’s not even here? I mean surely he is, why would he tell me that and not be here? Maybe he really is a jerk, even though he looked so misunderstood in my eyes. I sigh and turn towards the door, but I find myself colliding with another person for the second time since I’ve been there.

“Well, hello there.” He says with a smirk. He’s a tall guy with evenly tanned skin covered in a tight shirt, short black hair and pretty hazel eyes.

“Uh, hi.” I reply uneasily. “Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going.” Once I realize he’s not going to back up I take my own step back.

“Oh, it’s quite alright.” He replies, holding the smirk. “So, you here by yourself?”

“Uh--”

“She’s here with me.” I hear a small voice from behind me and turn to realize gratefully that it’s Nathaniel.

“Yeah, right.” The guy responds, losing some of his smugness and having it replaced with fear.

“Back off, Kirk.” Nathaniel steps forward a little, causing the guy to basically bolt out of here, but not before he tries to hide his fear with a roll of his eyes.

“Thanks,” I tell him, turning fully around to face him. “I was beginning to think you ditched me.”

“One of the perks of everybody being scared of you, the bully’s don’t mess with you.” He shrugs, hands buried down deep in his pockets. “I got a table on the top floor, come on.”

I smile and follow him up the spiral stair cases to the top floor of the library. This floor is a lot like the first floor, only more open and with less people, actually there is nobody else up here. It’s also not as big as the front, meaning some of it cuts off to where you can see everyone else below. It’s like a small attic. There are a few tables in front of a large window that covers one whole side. It has a beautiful view of the forest, what you can see of it. You can see part of the bridge that leads into the forest across the lake. The sun shines down on the blanket of trees, but even in the golden sunlight of the evening, the forest looks dark and almost terrifying, fog seeping through the cracks of the trees.

Nathaniel sits down at the table closest to the window and I take the seat next to him. He starts to take out his Charms Basic’s book and homework, and I do the same.

“I love to do my homework up here.” He starts quietly, almost as if he was talking to himself more than to me. “It’s so quiet and peaceful up here, and sometimes I can pretend nobody is trying to avoid me.” He lets out a small chuckle but at the end of the sentence I can’t help but feel sadness for him.

“I thought I could help you with your Charms Basics homework maybe, you know, if you needed it.” He fumbles with a pencil and I smile at him.

“I would love that.”

After a while we finish our Charms Basics homework, our algebra II and study our history notes together. But as the time ticks away we don’t leave the library, we get lost in conversation. He asks me about my life before this school, and I talk away while he listens enthusiastically, even though my life -- besides the obvious strange powers -- has been pretty boring and sad.

“So, they never found who did it?” He asks gently after I explain what happened to my mother. I shake my head in response, my hair bouncing back and forth.

“We thought they might eventually, but they haven’t yet. I’m sure they’ve given up by now though.” I shrug it off, trying to show that I’m okay. I know how awkward everyone gets when I bring up the death of my mother, so I try to be casual about it, as if I’m at peace with it even though I’m not.

“So, what about you? What’s your story?” I ask casually, but as soon as the words escape my lips I regret it as his face turn to the same brooding expression that’s been on it almost all day.

“You wouldn’t want to know.” He folds his arms and turns to stare out the window. I stare at him for a minute.

“I don’t know, I would like to hear it if you want to tell it.” I tell him and he stares at me through the corner of his eye before turning it back out to the darkening sky, the forest now barely visible.

“I accidentally killed my mum, dad and sister.” He says bluntly with no sugar coating. “Then I got landed in here.”

“I’m sorry.” Is the only response I can think of, but to my surprise I get a totally different response than what I had expected.

“Really?” He says in a small voice, reminding me of a small child.

“Of course.”

He narrows his eyes at me before realizing I’m telling the truth. “Most people freak out, don’t even bother to tell me they’re sorry or anything like that. All they see is a monster, they don’t worry my feelings. I guess I’m not used to sympathy.” Our eyes lock and he looks even more like a child than before, a little boy that’s lost, alone and afraid. He doesn’t have anyone he can talk to or rely on. He didn’t, that is.

“Well, they’re terrible. You charm doesn’t define who you are.” I tell him, now I’m the one staring out the window. “I, myself, have taken lives. On my sixteenth birthday, I had a large burst of energy and killed everyone in my neighborhood with pacemakers in their hearts, resulting in three deaths. It wasn’t anyone I knew, so I don’t know exactly how you feel, but I do know what it feels like to have the weight of another person’s life on your hands.” I realize that this is the first I’ve told anyone of what I have done, nobody knew except my father, until now. I have a blind trust in Nathaniel, and I want to know why.

“I guess we will have to be the two freakiest among the freaks together.” He says, the corner of his mouth curling up and I actually find myself laughing.

Once the bell rings for dinner we make our way down to the dining hall, we earn lots of strange looks. I can’t believe that everybody is so surprised that Nathaniel has someone walking with him. Did they ever think that maybe someone around here isn’t an arrogant coward? I guess I’ll be the one to prove them wrong then.

We get to the entrance of the dining hall and to my dismay I realize that Nathaniel’s hood is up once again and he’s slumped over, very unlike he was in the library with his messy hair freed and a smile on his face. He starts to walk over to his normal spot, but I stop him by grabbing onto his arm. He turns around in surprise at the sudden contact.

“Oh no, you don’t.” I say, mockingly shaking a finger at him. “You’re going to sit with me and my other friends.”

“W-what?” He stutters and I let go of his arm. “They hate me! It’s better if I eat alone.”

I just laugh and grab his arm again, pulling him towards our table. “Too bad.”

My friends see me and a smile comes across their faces, but they stop in mid wave as they see who is beside me.

“Hey guys.” I plop down in my normal seat but Nathaniel remains standing behind me. Nobody says anything, they only stare at him in silent fear.

“Maybe I should go... “ He points behind him but I just drag him into the seat next to me.

“You guys all know Nathaniel.” I say casually, ignoring their faces. He waves at them shyly. I see that Remi, who is in the seat on the other side of him, scoots as far away from him as she can. I frown at her, but she doesn’t notice. They all seem to have lost their appetites.

“Well, I’m going to get my food. Wanna come, Nate?” I ask politely and he shakes his head no. I stalk off to the food bars and pile the extra delicious food onto my plate. Mashed Potatoes, drumsticks, salad and sweet tea. While I’m up there Mr. Allore catches my eye, he gives me a small smile which I return before turning his head back to Mrs. McCall who seems in to be in a very deep, but boring rant.

I get back to my table and am surprised when I see Nathaniel is no longer sitting in his seat and my friends are back to talking along cheerily. I stand there, staring at them.

“Where’s Nathaniel?” I ask, squinting. They all look down at their food.

“Nate, went back to his own table.” Kierra says with a slightly hateful tone. I sigh at them in disgust.

“Seriously guys?” Anger flares up in me and I remember what Mr. Allore said and quickly calm myself. “He’s done nothing wrong.”

“He’s dangerous!” Kierra argues. “And I’m staying away from him, you should too.”

I roll my eyes. “He wouldn’t do anything to hurt us, not on purpose. Why do you think his skin is covered from head to foot?” When nobody answers I continue. “Apparently I’m the only one in this school that isn’t arrogant and bull headed.” At this I stomp off, fuming. I get to Nate’s table and slam my plate down and throw my mashed potatoes into my mouth angrily. He looks up at me questionably.

“Why is everyone so afraid of you!” I start my rant. “I mean, you take caution by wearing gloves and stuff. And also a lot of us have deadly powers! I mean, Kierra could literally set you on fire and I could make people explode if I get too angry! Even Lucas could supposedly draw a gun and kill us all.” I take a violent bite at my chicken.

“Maybe you should calm down then, I would rather keep my organs inside me.” He actually laughs at me. “You’re already starting to glow reddish.” Why is it I’m the one that’s angry and not him?

But he’s right. I do need to calm down. I swallow my chicken and close my eyes much like I did in Charm Control. I soon drain all negative emotions and am able to calm myself down. The pulsating red glow around me slowly drains away, as if I’m absorbing it.

“Why did you leave though?” I ask, putting lettuce in my mouth gently.

“They told me too.” He shrugs as if it’s normal. “But don’t get mad okay, they’re just scared.”

I groan loudly and he smiles at me. “What?”

“I don’t know, it’s just… you’re cute when you’re mad.” He chuckles lightly, but then realizes what he’s just said and his smile leaves his face.

“Oh really?” I grin mischievously. The rest of our dinner is spent without worrying about my friends not liking Nathaniel.

After I’ve had my fill, I ask Nathaniel to show me around outside. I’m absolutely dying to go outside, because I can see out the window that there are more orbs of light floating around out there, and it looks beautiful. He agrees and we head out the doors of the castle. My friends give me a “I don’t like this” look before we leave, but I ignore them.

I step outside and can’t keep my mouth closed. The light shines down on us as the orange orbs float around happily. I touch one and warmness consumes my hand. It starts bobbing slowly upward, I can’t help but wish that I was this graceful and make myself laugh.

“What’s so funny?” He asks and my only reply is:

“I’m just happy.”

We walk around the front of the school at first, which I’ve already seen. There’s a fair amount of picnic tables, but unlike when I arrived here yesterday, they are empty. There’s also a tree or two, the kinds with forks in them wide enough for you to sit in.

“What are these orbs of light anyways?” I ask, touching yet another one.

“I don’t know really, one of the teachers, Mrs. Swart I think, has the Charm of light or whatever.”

We go around the school and towards the lake. The grass descends down the small hill and eventually turns into sand where it meets the water. There’s a dock a little ways along the shore with a rope swing. I also realize that there’s yet another bridge, directly behind the school that leads across the lake and into the forest. But from what I can tell there is a lot of beach space on the other side where the forest is. The forest looks eerie, especially without the light orbs that surround us now.

“Creepy looking isn’t it?” Nathaniel scares me from behind, making me jump.

“Yeah, it is.” I agree.

“It’s called the Forest of Raina.” He explains. “From what I understand, Raina was Allore’s baby sister, and he was closest to her. When she died, in her nineties I think, he named this forest after her.”

I stare out at the dark trees, thinking about how terrible it must’ve been for Mr. Allore to watch his entire family die while he remained young, knowing there was nothing he could do about it.

“Let’s go back inside. Curfew is in a little bit. Also it’s sorta chilly in here. You can show me the rest some other time.” I say, turning around to go back around to the front of the school. I look up and notice how pretty the school looks with all the dorm lights casting a warm glow from the windows.

I step back inside the now almost deserted main hallway. Nathaniel and I walk towards the lift and step in for the still terrifying ride up. Once it gets to the fourth floor it stops and I step out, but when Nathaniel doesn’t follow I remember that his dorm is probably on another floor.

“Where’s your dorm?” I ask, not really wanting to separate yet.

“On the very top floor. The twelfth.” He runs his hands through his hair, making it messier than it already was.

“I didn’t know there was even a twelfth floor.” I say, looking at my feet.

“Yeah. I have a dorm all to myself.” He explains. “It’s pretty sweet.”

“Oh.”

“Maybe you should come visit it.” He suggests to my surprise. “I mean, you know, tomorrow or something.”

“That would be great.” I respond with a tired, but happy smile.

“Well, it was amazing to meet you today Elina.” He starts. “This has been the best day I’ve ever had here actually.”

“I’m glad I met you too.” I hold out a hand for him to shake. He looks surprised at first, but then slowly takes my hand with his gloved one. “Goodnight, Nathaniel.”

“Goodnight, Elina.” And with that the lift shoots upward, leaving me in a deserted hallway. I look at my watch and see that it says 11:23. I hurry off in the direction of my own dorm, not quite wanting to face my friends.

“Where have you been?” I am greeted by an annoyed Kierra as I quietly sneak through the door.

“I was with Nate.” I respond truthfully, earning a glare from Kierra. I sit my stuff down on one of the wooden chairs.

“Elina…” She sighs, getting up off the couch and flicking the T.V. off. “I know you don’t see it… but he’s dangerous.” This time her look towards me is sympathetic, and not angry like it was hours before at dinner.

“Yeah, I know he is, but he’s not going to hurt me.” I start digging through my bag to find my phone.

“Yeah, but you don’t know what Remi, Tanya, and I do.” She starts to open her mouth, but closes it again.

“Well, whatever it is, I don’t want to hear it.” I tell her before gently shutting the bathroom door behind me, despite the fact I want to slam it, my guess is that Tanya and Remi are already asleep.

Unlike this morning, I let myself soak in the warm running water. Running my hands through my long hair. I try to think of what Kierra could have possibly meant by “you don’t know what Remi, Tanya, and I do”. Surely it can’t be anything worse than what he’s already told me about him. Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter, it’s in the past. I don’t want to give up on this peculiar boy. He interests me. Who knows, I might even be able to help him.

I start to laugh quietly to myself, look at me, it’s only the first day and I’m already friends with a firebender, someone with telekinesis, someone super bendy, and an accidental murder that I want to get to know better and become friends with. Who knew that after only one day at this strange school I’ve met more people than I have in my entire life.

I crawl into bed after getting fully clothed and brushing my teeth, thoughts of my new future swimming around in my head.

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Thanks for reading guys! I hope you liked it. Please leave your feedback, it lets me know I’m going in the right direction. Thanks for all the reads so far!

Author's Note

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