Hidden Magic

Chapter Eight

It was lunch, and never was I more grateful for it, my first two classes had been drier than sand, well okay, intro to the Sikrit language hadn't been horrible, Professor Lowrey tried his best to make the lesson interesting, but I wasn't very good with languages so it had been hard for me to follow, formal etiquette was a class I could do without though. I understood the need to know how to do formal dances, and how to properly greet someone who was above you, whatever that was, and the etiquette teacher seemed to have very high expectations of me because I was from one of the original legacy bloodlines of Crest-Fallen.

I understood the necessity to know all those things, but when Professor Damis had smacked me on my back with a ruler for not curtseying with my back straight, for the third time, I admit to becoming more than a tad irritable, I was hoping some food would settle my mood out, because if it didn't I was probably going to bite someone's head off for doing something I didn't like that normally wouldn't bother me, in other words being mean to someone who didn't deserve it.

I follow some other students who were in my first-year etiquette class towards the lunch hall, it was kind of awkward, because I kept being stared at, I was the only first year from Sira branch in my classes so far, which meant I felt very alone when they all seemed to stay very far away from me. The rumors Ariel had warned me others would say about us, were obviously very evident in all their minds, it's like they thought I would attack them or give them some sort of disease, it wasn't a very pleasant feeling when all I had done was come here to learn.

"Karinna!" I look over to where I heard my name and smile for what felt like the first time all morning since classes started when I see Seth and some of the other Sira branch members from this morning. I move over to them and sit in the offered chair, grateful that I knew some people that understood what it was like to be in Sira branch, that they were nice enough to allow me to hang out with them even though they were all in years above me. "How were your classes today?" I give him a stiff grimace and their eyebrows raise in surprise.

"Sikrit is interesting I guess, but I'm not very good with languages, etiquette however was..." I trail off and they all wear similar faces of understanding.

"Horrid, yeah, I was so grateful you only have to take it the first year. Professor Damis really does not like us, I was a little late to class one time, and she told me maybe I should stop whoring myself out to other people, so I'm not dazed enough to be late to class." I stare at Astra in complete shock, you had to be joking, how had a teacher gotten away with that?

"It wasn't quite that bad, but after she hit me with that ruler for the third time, I became noticeably better if only for the anger making my muscles stiff and straight. She seemed to think I should be perfect from the get-go, kept making comments about my bloodline being disgraced by my actions." They all grumble looking very mad on my part, not that it seemed that we could do much.

"You are a disgrace to your bloodline. Undeserving of the prestige it gives you for being a whore of Sira branch." I blink in shock and turn around to where the voice came from, seeing a pale blonde girl looking down her nose at me.

"Excuse me, what did you just say to me?" Surely, I heard her wrong, surely this person who didn't know me hadn't just called me a whore for being in Sira branch.

"Oh, you heard me perfectly well, slut!" I stared at her with a blank face, holy unimpressed by her insults.

"Ok, sure, whatever, call me what you like, but who exactly are you and why do you seem to think I won't do anything to you for calling me a slut?" I had already been in a bad mood because of my etiquette lessons, but this bitch was making my bad mood worse, she better tread cautiously, because I had never been afraid to throw a punch if it was needed.