Chapter 9...Arriving

Sam and his soldiers took us safely to the main road. They waited patiently with us until Kylen's ride came. I caught a glimpse of a photographic memory reminder that Sam took. He was most definitely going to check if we were actually students at Elverton. I was hesitant to give my name but Kylen quickly fixed that, blurting it out before Sam even opened his mouth to ask. 

     I didn't mind being around the man because admittedly I did think of a future with Cassian and if that future became real I really wanted to get along with his family. Which meant that I had to fix things with Cleo–on second thought, I think I'm just going to let fate do its thing and then I do mine. 

     Kylen hopped into the front passenger seat and I hobbled into the back, placing my duffle bag beside me. I closed the door and glanced towards the driver. Her large blue eyes were piercing mine. I raised my brow and glanced towards Kylen, who had thankfully dropped the glamour. 

     "Oh, this is Vanessa. She nursed you back to health," Kylen introduced, motioning towards the brunette with freckles on her nose. 

     I watched amusingly as the woman, who was probably in her thirties, hit Kylen on the shoulder. 

     "Ow, don't hit me! I'm a very old man, you know," he yelled, rubbing his shoulder. 

     "You didn't tell me that she had woken up," Vanessa had an accent that told me that English was not her first language. I caught a glimpse of somewhere middle eastern when she started speaking again. 

     "I can't believe you, Kylen," she grumbled while starting the car. "And stop calling yourself that. Heck, you look younger than me." 

     Her eyes briefly met mine in the mirror as she started driving. She drove for 30 seconds and then suddenly stopped the car. 

     "Oh my gosh, I'm such an idiot!" She yelled, twisting in her seat to turn to me. "How are you feeling, dear? On a scale of one to ten. Do you have any headaches, nausea? Do you feel tired all the time? Do you know what your name is, sweetie?" She bombarded me with questions. 

     I shook my head slowly. I was experiencing headaches, nausea and I wish that I could forget my name and take frequent naps. 

     "Um," I said, turning away from her intense stare to look at Kylen, who was watching our encounter. "I feel fine. I only blocked out because it had been a really long time since I performed…that level of magic," I told her, moistening my lips. 

     She nodded, listening keenly to my every word. "If you ever feel lightheaded or confused, I am always here," she said with an encouraging smile. 

     Her positivity and kindness was very calming and nice. Her smile became contagious and I nodded, thankfully. 

     "Now where do I need to drop you two off, I'm almost late for work and my supervisor is an ass. Don't tell him I told you that, though," she commented, shifting the vehicle into drive. 

     The smile stayed on my face, all the way to the gates of Elverton. It was a huge campus surrounded by trees. We drove for 10 minutes across the first half of the property until we arrived at the large ivory gate. There was a small security post on the outside of the gate. As the car neared, I noticed a guard walking from the building. He held a sword-like object on his waist. 

     "Don't be afraid but this is where I leave you," Kylen said in a low tone, his eyes watching the guard like a hawk. 

     "What! But I don't know what to say or even if they'll let me in," I said in a panic, my anxiety was preparing to spiral out of control. 

     "Taiti, calm down. Christina likes to do things as she gets them, it prevents her from having work piled up on her desk. I'm sure that she made the call already," Kylen said softly. 

     I inhaled deeply, staring at the lightness of the sky. The sun was rising early and I hadn't slept…well barely. 

     "Okay," I said, taking another deep breath. 

     I opened the door and grabbed my bag. I slipped out of the car after an encouraging nod from Vanessa and a few words of encouragement. I hugged the duffle bag close to my chest, struggling under its weight until I managed to close the door. I stepped away from the car and paused as the window began winding down. 

     "Hey kid," Cassian's voice called. I flinched, glancing around, expecting to see a tall handsome–Adonis's cousin–man. The voice laughed and I narrowed my eyes at the car. "Breakfast," Kylen said, pushing a small paper bag through the window. I took it, hesitantly.

     With a honk the car drove away. I sighed as I limped closer to the guard, leaning the weight of the bag against my thigh. 

     "Good morning," I told the guard breathlessly. He nodded and motioned towards the guard post. He didn't expect me to go in there did he. 

     "Um, I'm new," I said meekly, staring at the guard cautiously. Make no mistake, I was prepared to break his skull open with my mind if I needed to. 

     "Go inside for verification," he commanded. 

     I inhaled deeply and stared at the doorway. I needed to stop being afraid. I was a powerful supernatural creature. I could take care of myself. 

     "Be smart, be strong, walk with your head held high and independence is key to survival," I chanted under my breathe. 

     I walked into the small building that was surprisingly spacious on the inside. A second guard stood next to a screen positioned in front of large double doors. He motioned for me to step forward. As I did a light appeared over my head and an invisible barrier shimmered into place behind me. I noticed that my picture along with a few vital information had appeared on the screen. I stopped in front of it and the screen became blank. 

     "Place your hand on the screen," the female guard said in a monotone voice. How bored was she? 

     I dropped the duffle bag to the floor. I was surprised to see a red light shine from the platform that I had unknowingly stepped on. 

     "Impressive," I muttered under my breathe, placing my right hand on the screen. 

     The female guard glanced at a tablet that was attached to her forearm. I lifted the duffle bag from the floor and fell a crunch from my back.

     "Do you classify as mage or darkling," she asked, finally showing some invitation. The curiosity in her eyes shifted to caution when I hesitated to answer. If my parents had been third generation supernatural creatures then I would have been a rare breed of supernatural. 

     "Magi," I answered with a shrug and so close to becoming a witch. 

     The female guard nodded and motioned for me to move forward. I glanced up noticing the shimmer of a second barrier. It was thicker than the first one. Its magic almost intoxicating as I stepped towards it. I was eager to know what it felt like. 

     What did it feel like? Ecstasy, pure untamed power. It was like that kiss, sending waves of electricity through my body. 

     I gasped as I stumbled through. I felt unstoppable. I laughed, feeling as if the guards made a huge mistake letting me in. Heck, even the duffle bag felt lighter. The double doors swung open and I was engulfed by light. I stepped through confidently, throwing the duffle bag over my shoulder. 

     Elverton was glorious. Freshly manicured grass, paved walkways, neatly trimmed trees and most importantly fresh magically potent air. It was slowly feeding my power lust. 

     The campus went as far as my eyes could see with tall towers reaching towards the skies, grazing the clouds. The path that I had stepped unto lead towards the supposed entrance of the academy. 

     My stomach grumbled as I began walking towards it. With one hand, I opened the paper bag to peek inside. Kylen had given me a sandwich and an apple but unfortunately I didn't get the chance to eat it because I was tumbling to the floor when a shoulder connected with mine. A sense of deja vu fell over me as I watched a pair of boots stepped on the sandwich and kicked the apple away. 

     I stood to my feet quickly, quicker than I would usually in such a case but I was angry. In high school, I always said that if I had my magic then I wouldn't be bullied and guess what bitches…I had my magic and furthermore I was not about to let anyone walk all over me. 

     "Hey, asshole!" I yelled to the very tall and muscular guy. 

     He paused and turned dramatically slowly towards me. His dark brown eyes were burning holes into my head. I could feel the negative energy coming from him and as I invaded his thoughts I discovered why. 

     Derrick's girlfriend broke up with him recently. Derrick was a hellhound and his girlfriend was a banshee. Match made in the dark realm. Did I mention that I was pissing off a hellhound? Supernatural creatures that spontaneously combust into hellfire, a man stronger than a bull and a beast more ferocious than a lion. 

     I inhaled deeply. "You pushed me," I said with a subtle challenge in my voice. In my defence I was high off magic and power. 

     "Maybe you should have been paying attention to where you're going," he snapped, grounding his foot to the ground. 

     My shoulders tensed as I spotted his intention for me and a glimpse of why his girlfriend broke up with him and what he recently did to her. 

    Yes, I acknowledge that I have a hero complex, where I like to kick assholes ass for hurting the women in their life. Maybe I just like the fact that I'm no longer the weak magicless little girl, who was bullied. Amberly Vera might have created a monster. 

     "Maybe you should apologise," I challenged him, crossing my arms. I tilted my head as his face contorted into that of pure rage. His teeth clenched so tight they could break, his lips pulled back into a snarl and smoke rising from his skin. A smirk fell on my lips as I watched him, fascinated. "Or I could kick your ass," I taunted.