The Twilight Children//The School for Good and Evil

9 ~ Cardinal Balance

. : Laura of Neverland : .

"What is the point of this class?" Agatha groaned.

They had left the castle and were heading towards the edge of the blue forest. Everything in front of them ranged from the deepest blue of the seas to the pale blue of the sky. Laura found herself fond of the sapphire-coloured toadstools on the path. They reminded her of the dark red ones on Neverland that they often harvested for soup. She wasn't sure if these would be edible, but she imagined them tasting like fruit, and it made her smile.

"It's the school's way of teaching us to get practical experience in the woods. Before the forest was created, students had no idea how to survive and often died before gaining the chance to actually start their fairy tales. That is why the woods were created. It's a safe place to train."

Agatha glanced at her. "You spent over thirty years living on a magic island that was likely far more vicious than anything I would ever encounter. So why are you taking the class?"

Laura rolled her eyes and nudged her. "It's mandatory."

They paced through the woods, and into a vast empty clearing. A red flag with the number seven was standing tall in the centre, but other than that, it was empty.

Laura knelt down and ran a hand over the crystalline grass. She had never seen anything like it. It was soft to the touch and still seemed deadly sharp. The blue was a beautiful shade and reminded her of the mermaid lagoon.

She put her books down next to her and smiled at the grass. "This is incredible, I've never seen anything like it."

Agatha smiled down at her. "It's a wonderful shade of blue. We don't have anything remotely like that where I grew up."

Laura straightened up, running her hands over the edges of her pink skirt to ensure it was free of wrinkles. "It's almost identical to the flag of the place I grew up. It's a rare colour in nature."

Laura twisted around to look at the clearing in more detail but stopped at the sudden approach of a Never.

Agatha's face drooped, and Laura knew it must be Sophie. She had heard countless tales about Sophie from Agatha in their few days together, and something about the stories caused chills up Laura's spine.

The girl was gorgeous, with thick blonde hair and emerald green eyes, but it was almost too perfect how well manicured she was. Sophie even had her walk down to a perfect stride as if she were constantly ready to be walked down the aisle at her wedding.

Laura crinkled her nose. It reminded her of her mother.

Laura had heard countless stories about her mother from before she married her father, and had enjoyed them. Her mother had been a quiet farm girl, who had moved to the kingdom when her own mother passed to pursue a new life. She had gotten mixed up with the local legend and it had led her to Laura's father. Apparently, after marrying her father she had begun to act that way. Prim and proper.

It had pissed a young Laura off, and now that she had grown up, it disappointed her. The only reason anyone had acted like that was to impress a prince.

Laura narrowed her eyes. Sophie wanted to impress a prince.

She turned to look at Sophie-- who was actively ignoring Agatha-- and then twisted her neck to look back towards the castle.

Her heart dropped.

This couldn't be happening. The two co-ed classes that Laura had, and both of them she shared with him.

Sebastian hadn't noticed her yet and was laughing at something with Tedros. The sunlight bounced off of the blue trees and onto his face, illuminating his red hair for a moment.