Ancient History

Asha fidgeted nervously as she stood at the gates to Star Academy. The ancient, wrought iron gates seemed to tower over her. She could see and hear some of the students as they hung out in some common grassy area.

She was doing her best to be confident but it made her nervous to know that she was going to be one of the few new people here. She felt slightly relieved when she spotted an older woman approaching her with a brisk stride.

"Hello Asha," the older woman smiled as she reached the gates and they swung inward toward her. "I'm Headmistress Weatherly."

"Hello," Asha responded slightly shyly as she slung her duffle bag over her shoulder and grabbed the handles of her suitcases, wheeling them past the gates. "It's nice to meet you."

"You too dear," Headmistress Weatherly said with a close mouthed smile. "Do you need a hand?"

Asha shook her head and smiled at the headmistress reassuringly, pulling her bags forward to prove her point. Headmistress Weatherly nodded and turned on her heel, obviously expecting Asha to follow.

Asha hustled so that she was walking in line with the headmistress, who seemed to slow her stride down slowly.

"You look so much like your mother," Headmistress Weatherly commented casually. "It was just like seeing her on her first day all over again."

Asha stumbled slightly, completely caught off guard by this information. Celia hadn't mentioned anything about it before she'd put Asha on the plane and said her goodbyes.

"My mother came here?" Asha asked curiously as she looked at the headmistress while doing her best to keep her bags moving.

"Of course!" the headmistress exclaimed. "I train all the best and she was one of the best."

"Really?" Asha asked in surprise as she absorbed the new information. "I didn't know that."

Headmistress turned and offered her a sad smile. "She was on track to be a great Luna. I'm sure you'll follow in her footsteps."

Asha nodded and followed the headmistress quietly while she was lost in thought - imagining her mother walking on the very same grounds. It added another layer to this mystery, at least she now knew some of why her mother had wanted her to come here. Unfortunately, she also had more questions now and no guarantee of an answer.

"We'll go around the Quad," the headmistress said as they avoided the crowded common area. "It'll be easier with your bags."

Asha nodded and kept her eyes locked ahead and not on the students, some of whom were turning as they walked past. She felt tense under the scrutiny and she hoped that it would be different on the actual first day of school.

"So this is the Quad, students love to hang out here between classes and on weekends. As you can see," Headmistress Weatherly commented dryly as they passed by. "These buildings here hold all the classrooms."

Asha looked up at the old, towering buildings and thought about Leia taking classes here at her age. Strangely, it made her feel closer to her mom than she had in a while. It also made her feel less weird about coming here at such short notice.

Maybe Leia had left something here for her to find.

"I'll take that," the headmistress spoke, breaking into Asha's thoughts.

She grabbed a suitcase from Asha and picked it up easily with one hand before she started descending the staircase. Asha picked up her other suitcase with more difficulty and stumbled down the stairs, her eyes taking in her new surroundings.

When  they reached the bottom, the headmistress kept the suitcase and smiled at Asha encouragingly.

"That large building over there is the dining hall," the headmistress pointed out as they walked by a large brick building with large windows. "You can get food there any time of the day."

Asha could see some students eating and hanging out in the dining hall and she hoped she wouldn't struggle to make friends.

"Here are the dorms," Headmistress Weatherly said as she turned into a small courtyard with a fountain and bench in the center and surrounded by four, two storey buildings.

The buildings were red brick covered in vines and creepers, giving them a very quaint look. Asha felt slightly better seeing the dorms, they gave off a comforting vibe and it made her feel like she could like her new home. She just hoped everyone was as welcoming as the dorms looked.

"We have a few other dorms around here but this is where you'll be staying," Headmistress Weatherly continued as she led the way toward one of the buildings.

They stopped in front of the building with an Emerald green door and a gold door knocker. She pulled out a gold key and unlocked the door before turning and handing the key to Asha.

"Do not lose your key."

Asha nodded in understanding and immediately shoved the key into the pocket of her jeans. She was filled with nerves and anticipation as the headmistress opened the door and led the way into a very cozy living room.

There was an old but comfy looking couch and some beanbags pushed close together. There was a coffee table that had some books piled on top of it already. The table's in front of the fireplace where someone had started a fire, making the house nice and warm.

"You'll be sharing a room with one other new girl," the headmistress explained as she pulled Asha over to a staircase on the far right. "Her name is Emily. I hope you two can help each other with your transition."

Asha smiled at the headmistress as they came to stop in front of the door right at the top of the stairs. "I'm sure we'll be great friends."

The headmistress nodded approvingly and knocked on the door firmly. They waited for only a minute before the door opened to reveal a girl about Asha's height and age. She had light blond hair that fell to below her shoulders and light green eyes.

"Emily," Headmistress Weatherly smiled. "This is your new roommate, Asha. Please make her feel welcome."

Asha met Emily's gaze and offered her a shy smile and a small wave. The other girl beamed back and reciprocated the wave before stepping back.

"Please come in."

"I'll leave you two to it," the Headmistress announced before she turned and disappeared back down the stairs.

The two girls waited until they heard the click of the front door closing before either of them moved. Emily stepped forward and rolled Asha's bag into the room. Asha smiled at her gratefully before following her into their shared room.

The room had one bed pressed against the right wall and the other bed pressed against the opposite wall. At the end of each bed there was a small desk with a chair and lamp and there was a closet at the back of the room.

"Home sweet home!" Emily announced with a shy smile. "It's not much but I think we can make it pretty cozy."

Asha nodded in agreement as she put one of her bags down on the free bed and sat down. Now that she was finally here, her nerves had kicked back in and she wasn't sure how this was going to go.

"Have you met anyone else?" Asha asked curiously as she stood up and started unpacking.

A weird look crossed Emily's face and she nodded, "I met two of the people who live here but they weren't very friendly for obvious reasons."

"Obvious reasons?" Asha echoed in confusion as she stopped to look at Emily. "What does that mean?"

"Can't you smell it?" Emily asked in surprise.

Asha completely stopped her unpacking and lifted her nose up to sniff the air. She immediately caught Emily's scent which was now starting to mingle with her own. She looked at Emily and shook her head.

Emily sighed and bit her lip before she confessed her secret, "I'm half human. It seems that people here don't take too kindly to that."

"Oh," Asha commented, unsure of what else to say. "I don't care about any of that. We can stick together."

Emily looked surprised before the expression melted into one of relief and she nodded. "Thanks, I really appreciate that."

"Roomies have to stick together," Asha laughed with a wink.

"You're not from around here, are you?" Emily asked curiously.

Asha laughed and nodded, "Did the accent give it away?"

"That was definitely a clue," Emily laughed before sobering up. "I will totally understand if you change your mind about being friends. I have a feeling I'm in for a bumpy ride."

"I'm not going to change my mind," Asha reassured her in a firm tone. "You're stuck with me now."

Emily shot Asha a grateful look and nodded toward the closed bag, "Need help unpacking?"

"I'd really appreciate it," Asha answered with a smile. "We can grab something to eat together when we're done."

The two girls shared a smile as they felt a real friendship start to form. They both felt a little better to have each other and it made what lay ahead of them seem less daunting. Asha wasn't bothered about Emily's half blood status because that kind of thing had never bothered her.

Besides, she knew that she was going to stand out - it couldn't hurt to already have one friend under her belt. Maybe Emily would be able to help her figure out what it is that her mother had wanted her to gain from this experience.