Lucy stood up and followed the other pupils congregating around Mrs Donovan. A girl with thick, brown pigtails came to stand next to her. She had long, thin legs and freckles.
"Yes," she answered Mrs Donovan as her name was called. Lucy overheard her name. Lauren.
"Hello. You must be Lauren, I'm Lucy," She said quietly.
"Hi" Lauren replied. "Do you know anybody here?"
"No."
"Nether do I."
"Lucy Flame?" Mrs Donovan called out into the crowd.
"Yes," Lucy said.
"Good. We are all here. Let's go." Mrs Donovan walked out of the room, with a trail of 20 teenagers behind her.
The class walked in silence down the corridor, with just Mrs Donovan's shoes echoing off the walls making a sound. They turned left into a large classroom, that looked like it could of been a grand study years ago, with gold patterns on the ceiling. Mrs Donovan said to her puplis to take a seat and explained to them what was on their tables. Each desk had an egg, held up by a metal holder, an exercise book and a pamphlet. Lucy sat on the table next to Lauren and looked at her equipment.
"On your table is a dragon's egg," Mrs Donovan paused as her students whispered amongst each other, half-amazed, half-excited. Mrs Donovan waited till the hubbub had quieted. "As I was saying... You each have a dragon's egg to keep and look after..." Another wave of excitement rippled through the class.
"I fully trust you on this, seen as you're not little children any more...You also have a pamphlet to help you care for him or her and a book to write down everything about your dragon. Any questions?" The room was still and silent with 20 frozen and bewildered kids. "Good. Now, take your things and I will show you the first year's dormitory. And for Goodness sakes, don't drop your egg!"
The dormitory was cosy and softy lit. It had 18 four poster beds and two corner beds, one at each end. The light source was candles: some were held up by chandeliers, others were scattered around the room, their wax melting onto the surface. The dormitory had four, wooden chest of drawers (one drawer each ) and two large bathrooms. The Tudor windows were small and had little window shelves for bedside tables. The beds were already allocated by luggage placed by the end of them and hand luggage on the two pillows. Lucy looked around the dormitory to find her bed. She spotted her purple and blue suitcase on the right hand corner bed.
"Unpack and I'll meet you in the room where we first met, for dinner, in precisely 20 minutes." Mrs Donovan clanked back down the corridor and disappeared round a corner. As soon as she was gone, the group of new students started talking again. All apart from Lucy and Lauren who went to their beds. They both prayed that their beds were next together, and, to their relief, Lauren walked to the bed next to Lucy's. She carefully placed her egg down on the bed and sat down herself, facing Lucy.
"It's good that we have beds next together, 'cos we only know each other," she said, rustling the duvet as she moved towards her hand luggage.
"Yeah," Lucy replied not looking up from her egg, which she had hold of.
"Are you listening to me?" Lauren looked up, still holding her lip balm, that she had just smeared all over her dry lips.
"No, not really," Lucy confessed.
"What are you paying attention to then?" Lauren stood up.
"The egg."
"What?"
"The egg..." Lucy repeated. "Its changing colour."
Lucy and Lauren were the last students down for tea.
"There you are girls." Mrs Ceridwen was waiting for them at the entrance to the dining room. "Do spruce yourselves up a bit." But before they could do so, Mrs Ceridwen brushed down their blazers for them. "There. In you go." She smiled proudly at her work and let the two girls past. It didn't take long for them to find the two empty spots. As soon as they sat down a waiter gave them their dinner. Lucy smiled politely as he placed a bowl down for her. Spaghetti Bolognese. She let her mind drift back to the last 20 minutes.
"What?" Lauren had exclaimed again, looking at her own sea blue egg, then back at the once fierce red egg, that was Lucy's. "But Lucy...A glowing egg...That's impossible!"
"Well it's happening now...What do we do?" Lucy looked around, hoping that something would help her. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a adult walk past the door.
"Miss!" Lucy jumped up and ran after her with the egg, now glowing yellow in to orange, with the dragon embryo becoming clear.
"Miss..." Lucy gasped as she finally caught the teacher. "My egg..." She shoved the glowing egg in her face.
"Oh, my. Dear... your dragon is about to hatch."
"What?"
"Come. We must prepare for the birth. Your dormitory is here, is it not?" She quickly led Lucy to the door. "Yes."
"Put the egg on your bed then get some towels. I'm Mrs Koster by the way. Who are you, child?" Mrs Koster inspected the nearest chest of drawers, by dragging her finger her forefinger across the surface, then wiping it with her thumb. She pulled back in disgust.
"I'm Lucy," replied Lucy, getting a pile a towels from the girl's bathroom cupboard and bringing them over to the bed.
"Surname, child." Mrs Koster came over to the bed and started to make the towels into a patten.
"Flame. Lucy Flame."
"Mmm..." A hint of disapproval appeared in Mrs Koster's eyes. "And yours?" Her gaze flickered from Lucy to Lauren.
"Oh...Lauren Woods, miss," Lauren spoke softly and was leaning against her bed post, one hand clenching the other elbow.
"Speak up, child," she demanded.
"Lauren Woods." Lauren spoke more conveniently now. Suddenly a loud crack came from the egg. It was breaking through.
