Ch 1.1: Arrival

The Endrin National Fortress Academy came into view, giving Elaina her first glimpse of her second chance at life. She leaned out the window of the carriage to get a better look, grinning even as her chestnut hair danced around her face and obscured the view. Even from this distance the school was imposing, numerous towers jutting from the pristine white base topped with blue roofs, surrounded by a sprawling green lawn. “Don’t fall out now, darling,” her coachwoman shouted from the front, her own curled black hair flowing in the wind in a way Elaina was sure was more graceful than her own. “They won’t pay me if you show up running behind the cart.”

Elaina laughed and leaned back into the carriage before opening the small communication window to answer back. “I’m not going to fall out right before I arrive at Endrin! I’d be mortified!”

Char kept her head facing the road, but Elaina could see the grin growing on her face. “I don’t know what to expect from you at this point. It’s only been a week, but I don’t think a day has passed since I met you that you haven’t done something to mortify yourself.”

Elaina pursed her lips, fighting back a blush. It was true, of course, but now that she was finally here that would change, had to change. Her days as a walking ball of embarrassment were over, starting now.

“But don’t worry about that, dear. Traveling so far is always rough for first-timers. Some people take to it better than others.”

Elaina was already sure she was firmly, firmly placed in the camp of “others,” but she appreciated the attempt at comforting her anyway. “Ya, traveling… Once I’m settled in at the academy, things’ll be okay.” She almost believed it.

The two kept up their small talk for the next half hour or so before they reached the front gates. Getting out of the carriage gave Elaina her first proper view of the Academy. She’d heard of the towers before, and had honestly thought they looked smaller than expected as they approached, but now she realized she had been wrong. The towers had seemed small because she had no idea the base building and surrounding fields would be so enormous. She stood in awe of the castle, a place of legend, one that may as well have been a myth to her just a year ago, and her new home for the next three years.

“Alright, I know it’s impressive, but you have to quit gawking.” Elaina broke from her trance and saw that Char had already unloaded her two bags from the back of the carriage and set them down just in front of the gate. “I’m not Aspected like you, so they won’t even let me through the gates. It’s up to you from here.” Elaina winced a little at the joke. Char didn’t seem to mean anything negative by it, but it did make Elaina vibrantly aware of her situation, the nature of their relationship and respective statuses.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you get all that stuff-”

“Nah nah, that’s what I’m paid for,” Char said, waving Elaina off. The woman’s face grew even warmer than normal when she smiled at her. “I’m happy I got to spend the trip with someone like you for once. Most years it’s just the usual noble brats who think I’m one of their house servants.”

That did scare Elaina. She’d tried avoiding the thought as much as possible, but she couldn’t completely ignore that she was walking into the metaphorical wolves’ den with quite a lot of wool covering a very sheep-shaped body. “Are they really that bad?”

“Eh, to me? Ya, but you’re one of them, now, whether you act like it or not. Shouldn’t be too much of a problem for you to get along with ’em.”

“Right…” Elaina looked back at the gates. The suits of armor standing on either side didn’t beckon her inside, but the sun was near setting, and she knew she couldn’t linger long. Char had kept a fast pace over their seven days, but it was a tight trip, and she was likely one of the last arrivals today, Awakening Day. “I do think I have to go now.” She turned back to Char, then walked forward and hugged her. “Thanks for bringing me this far. I can handle it from here.”

Char patted her on the back, holding the embrace until Elaina let go. “One more thing,” she said, reaching into her jacket pocket and pulling out a leather necklace adorned with a wooden star. “It’s not much, but happy birthday.”

Elaina took it in her hands and marveled at the piece. Fine leather, excellent wood carved completely smooth. This was the type of thing that the wealthy of her village would flaunt. “I- how much did this cost?”

“Ha, nothing, dear. The string is from an old saddle, and I made the star myself. It’s a good hobby to pass the nights on these long trips.” She grabbed the piece back for herself and slipped it over Elaina’s head. “I know you didn’t have a real chance to celebrate, so I wanted to get you at least one proper present.”

Elaina took the star in her hands once more as it hung from her neck and beamed back up at Char before embracing her again. “I love it.”

Char squeezed her tightly back before finally letting go. “It looks good on you, a star for the star blessed.”

Star blessed. That’s what Elaina was now, or would be after her Awakening tonight, which she was getting dangerously close to being late for. “Thank you so much, for everything, but I do need to go.”

“Ya ya, oh great hero of the future. Get to class before they send you to wizard detention or whatever.”

Elaina laughed as she grabbed her bags from the ground. “I will! Have a safe trip back!” She turned back to the gates, the suits of armor standing ever imposing as she did. This was it. If her village priest had made a mistake… Well, she would know soon enough. She drew in one deep breath before darting through. She’d half expected one final humiliation to cap off her trip, but the autonomous guards remained still, and Elaina passed through with nothing but a slight tingle coursing through her body.

Endrin Academy, she’d made it.

After passing through the gate and getting over the weird sensation it gave—Elaina wondered briefly if that had been the rumored barrier meant to keep out non-students or just her own nerves—the walk up to the school was remarkably mundane. She lugged her two suitcases across the sprawling lawn. As she approached the fortress that grew in size with each step forward, a large group of small dots came into view, the other students.

At first Elaina thought she might have been in trouble already. If these people are all waiting to get in for some reason, I may not be inside in time for the ceremony, the ceremony in question being her Awakening of all things. Her fears were soon assuaged though, as she realized the students didn’t seem to be waiting at all, but instead mingling amongst each other, enjoying the pleasant late afternoon that hung over their first day of classes.

That was almost worse. Elaina shuffled forward through the masses of her new classmates, uncertain what to do next. She felt smaller and smaller as she waded through, approaching the now gargantuan walls of the castle. Which way was the entrance? How were these students getting along with each other so quickly? Why weren’t any of them carrying luggage?

“Hey, suitcase girl!” she heard from her left, turning quickly to see a group of students, three girls and two boys, standing next to a large pile of neatly stacked luggage. “I think you’re looking for this right here,” a blonde girl from the group said, beckoning Elaina over with a smile.

Elaina smiled back and walked towards the group. The others stood off to the side as the one girl approached, meeting Elaina and offering to take one of the bags. “Thanks so much,” Elaina said as she handed one over. “I was getting a little overwhelmed.”

“No worries! Girls like us have to stick together, right? We’ll just drop them over here.” The mystery girl pranced over to the pile of suitcases, and the two placed the bags on top of some others that looked sturdy enough. “I spoke to an instructor earlier. Their porters or whatever will take them to our rooms.”

“Oh, but I don’t have a tag on them or anything,” Elaina said.

The girl cocked her head, confused. “Hmm? No, that doesn’t matter. You realize this is Endrin, right?” she said with a laugh.

“Man, Prisma,” one of the guys from the group said, “Did you seriously just grab a hick?” Shit, no way they caught on already? Elaina thought, slinking her shoulders down. Her hopes of going more than three sentences without giving herself away were already up in flames.

“Oh shut it, Waine,” the girl, Prisma, said, waving him off. “But wait, are you really a hick?”

“Uhm, I guess kind of?” Elaina said. There was no use lying. If they were going to make fun of her for it, well… “I’m from a small village out on the north border.”

“Really? Are your parents nobles out there, or knights stationed there for some reason?”

“No, actually. My parents are weavers,” Elaina replied, doing her best to keep from making eye contact with the group.

“Woah,” Prisma said, “that’s so cool! You aren’t even legacy? Your aspect must be really strong to have been selected for Endrin.”

“Ya, right,” Waine said. “Maybe this basketmaker is even gonna get a full-fledged class at our Awakening.” He stepped away from the group before leaning over and pushing his face right in front of Elaina’s. “Or maybe she’s just a dud.”

Elaina stood there, frozen as much by Waine’s words as his piercing blue eyes. He was just mocking of course—no one had been granted an actual class instead of just an aspect in centuries, and duds were just myths—but she had no idea how to respond. “Enough,” Prisma said, stepping in between the two of them. “I already told her we have her back. Commoner or not, she’s still one of our classmates, and they’ll eat her alive if we leave her alone.”

Waine looked over Elaina again and shrugged. “At least she looks the part.”

Looks the part? Elaina raised her head then looked up at the group, really looked at them for the first time since she’d closed the distance. He doesn’t mean… Does he? There was no denying it. None on the students Elaina could see were exactly ugly, but the group of freshman she’d found herself with were on another level. The boys, even Waine with his spiked, angry black hair and even angrier eyes, were certainly attractive, but the other two girls were downright gorgeous.

And then there was Prisma herself. There was no way that Elaina could be grouped with her of all people, not in that way. Finally taking everything about the girl in after having been preoccupied with luggage and her own anxieties, Elaina struggled to find words for the second time in as many minutes. Prisma’s platinum blonde hair fell as straight as the Endrin guards stood, extending just below her neck, resting on a chest that pushed out her white uniform shirt and blue blazer with forceful elegance. Her chest wasn’t quite as large as Elaina’s, not there there were many people that Elaina knew who could say that, but sat perfectly on her torso, drawing Elaina’s eyes for a period of time approaching indecency. Elaina forced out a cough, breaking away from Prisma’s chest just long enough to see the hem of her skirt, stopping over milk-white thighs, squished by socks rising just above the knee—

Elaina snapped her head up to Prisma’s face. She had blue eyes too, like Waine, but not that piercing electric blue. A deeper, calming blue surrounded by blushing cheeks.

“Alright, I’ll go along with it,” Waine said. “But it’s your ass that’s out if she ends up dragging the group down.”

Prisma rolled her eyes. “With us helping her? She’ll be fine. Anyway, I’m Prisma Fireguard.” She extended a hand out to Elaina. “Nice to meet you.”