4. The International Werewolf Academy

       They traveled for hours through the mountainous terrain & thick forests before they finally reached the gates. It was late morning by the time the bus pulled to a stop in the large circle driveway to the academy entrance. The other students quickly vacated the bus, as they all had been enrolled the previous year. She was the only 1st year student from her pack & though she was nervous to begin this journey she refused to let it show. She took her time packing up her belongings from the bus before exiting the vehicle. 

       Stepping off the bus she took in a deep inhale of the fresh mountain air. Sure, she could smell the other wolves throughout the territory, but she had always had a knack for being able to filter scents. She would only smell what she chose to smell in this moment, & the mountain air was not only refreshing, but incredibly exhilarating also. 

        "Hey Maeva, your things have already been taken in by the Deltas, they'll get them to your room. If you want I can go with you to the main hall so you can get your program & room assignment." David smiled kindly at her.

         "Yes, please, lead the way," she laughed. She had no idea where to go once inside the large wooden doors, so she was happy to have a kind face to help her navigate through today.  

         He led her through a series of hallways until they came to a set of open double doors. Inside were 4 long tables on each wall of the room, with students standing in lines infront of them. Above the tables read A-G, H-M, N-S, & T-Z. 

         "Your over there. You just tell them your name & they'll hand you your envelope with all the information you need. I'll take this stuff & wait here for you." David pointed to the table labeled T-Z before grabbing her pillow & blanket from her arms. She smiled and nodded at him before heading over to stand in the line. 

          When it was finally her turn she made her way to a older woman with blonde hair & glasses sitting behind the large table. 

            "Maeva Thompson," she told the woman before she had a chance to ask. The woman nodded & got up to go dig through the folders in boxes along the wall. She pulled out an envelope & checked its contents before returning to her seat. 

             "Well Maeva, it looks like your enrolled in a hybrid program, your the only 1st year student I've ever seen accomplish such a task. Hybrid programs are normally only available AFTER the 1st year. Your room number and keycard are in the folder inside this packet, along with the date, time & room number for you to have your ID picture taken. There's also a map of the grounds, student handbook, rules & regulations, student clubs & organizations information, & general information on the academy inside as well. Goodluck & have a great year." The woman told her as she handed her the envelope with a smile. 

             "Thank you." She smiled back before turning around & walking back towards David. The woman had told her she was enrolled in a hybrid program, but she wasn't quite sure what that meant. She also had said those were usually only available to students after their first year. But, here she was, attending the academy for free & enrolled in a hybrid program in her 1st year. She knew she had impressed the Headmaster, but he must have REALLY been impressed. 

          She waited until she was standing back with David before opening the envelope & pulling out the folder. As the woman had told her, inside the folder the was a card insert that held her keycard, and stuck to the folder underneath the keycard was a sticker with print on it that read "Rhodes Hall, Room #S415." There were several papers & pamphlets inside the folder as well, but she would have to read through those later. She put the keycard in her pocket & closed the folder before sliding it back into the envelope. 

         "Rhodes Hall is a scholars hall. I thought you said you impressed the Headmaster with your fighting skills?" David said as he motioned for her to follow him & began leading the way. 

         "I did, but I did really well on the entrance exams too. The lady said I was in a hybrid program," she shrugged. 

         "As a first year? That's impressive. It's hard to get in a hybrid program as a second year so you definitely did something right." He told her as they walked out of a side door. 

         They stepped into a beautiful large courtyard. It was perfectly crafted with flowers, trees, bushes & benches in the perfect locations & Maeva knew she would spend alot of time in this courtyard. David led the way through the mazes of pathways that held a slight incline & through the large, gorgeous gazebo that sat atop the incline & had a few decently sized tables inside. 

        "Some of the Alphas like to eat meals out here when the weather is decent." David told her as they walked through it. She could certainly see why. The view it offered was nice. In the 360° view you could see the courtyard & a large portion of the building she walked out of, a dirt road & the training fields behind it (complete with sweaty muscular guys training) & a few of the buildings that sat behind them, as well as the other side of the court yard & another large building. 

       "That's Rhodes Hall directly infront of us. There's a courtyard on the other other side that connects to the Alpha, Beta & Gamma halls. Warrior, Omega, Delta & Mid-Rank halls are on the other side of the building." He told her as they walked through the courtyard. 

       "The building we just walked out of is called the Packhouse. Aside from the ballroom, that's the room we were in, a few lounges, a game room, a multi-media room, a few different sized dining rooms &  the cafeteria, it's administrative. The buildings that house classrooms are located behind the dorm halls.  

       She nodded at him, thankful to have him explaining things to her. They stopped on the wide cobblestone walkway at the end of the path. She looked up at the large building infront of her. This would be her home for the next 9months. She looked over at David who was watching her & smiled. 

     "I joined a hybrid program this year too, so I've been upgraded to Rhodes Hall as well. Shall we go find our rooms?" He asked glancing up at the building.

      "What room are you in?" She asked him as she started walking towards the stairs. 

       "238," he told her. They walked up the steps, passing a few groups of girls. 

        They stepped inside to a gorgeous foyer. There was a desk where an Omega girl was sitting listening to room assignment complaints under a large grand staircase that circled up to a second floor loft that semi-overlook the first floor. There were door frames on either side that had overhead flaggers telling you what was located through it. 

       She started walking towards the stairs & he followed. Neither of them said anything as they looked around while they walked. When they reached the loft on the 2nd floor there were directions to room sections painted on the far wall. 200-240 rooms were to their left, 240-280 rooms on the right. There was a staircase behind them that went to the 3rd floor. 

       "I'll walk you up to your room before I find mine," David told her. 

       "Thank you." She smiled to him before turning & heading in the direction that the wall indicated. She walked past 2 lounges & into an open lounge that sat at the bottom of another grand staircase. They walked up the stairs & continued to follow the directions on the walls. When they reached the 4th floor staircase she couldn't help but notice the differences. The first 2 staircases were large, open, & showy, but this staircase was not only smaller, it was secluded & private. 

        They reached the top of the stairs and walked into an open, cozy lounge & kitchenette area. There weren't numbers painted on the walls, but instead, written in chalk, on a chalkboard that sat on an easel there were numbers & arrows. It said "Welcome!" at the top, 400-415 with an arrow pointing left, & 415-430 with an arrow to the right. Below that it said "Floor meeting HERE at 8pm." She noticed that there were less than half as many rooms on this floor than the others & realized that the S in her room number must have meant suite. 

        She looked around at the girls in the lounge and knew that each of them came from a high ranked family. She internally groaned, copping a giggle from Gia. She looked over at David & could see that he knew how she was feeling. 

       She internally rolled her eyes as she started down the hall in search of her room. She was going to spend the next 9 months surrounded by Alpha, Beta & Gamma females. Well, if that was the case then she would definitely have to show them that she wasn't going to be bullied if it came to it. She knew that the mean girl behavior of she-wolves was only enhanced when there were more people around & part of starting fresh was no longer accepting or ignoring their bully behavior.

      After walking down the hall past 2 large lounges and 12 suite doors they came to the end of the hall which opened up into another large lounge area. It held floor to ceiling windows with French doors that opened up to a stone, ivy covered balcony. They stopped a few feet from the archway to the lounge, & on the right was the door to her room. It was a solid oak door with the numbers 415 in simple white blocks.