Hazel of ACE

2 - Orientation

 The following morning, Calypso shook Hazel up and the two got ready for the Academy's orientation. They found assigned uniforms in the closet – a plaid purple pinafore with a cotton black sweatshirt, followed by sheer black tights and combat boots.

After they got dressed, the two headed out to join Jason and his new roommate. They were wearing black trousers with a purple shirt and a black tie, plus well-polished black dress shoes.

Jason waved. "Good morning. Rise and shine, dandelion." Hazel smiled. "You look good," he added as an afterthought.

Hazel blushed and smiled. "Good morning," she chuckled. "You too."

"What's good?" said Calypso, still half-awake, but smiling at this awkward exchange. "Who's your new friend there?"

The boy from last night stood next to Jason. Hazel finally got a good look at him, and she furrowed her brows, remembering yesterday's incidents. He was a lot taller than Jason, but not too much by Hazel. His black hair was curly and grown-out, nearly covering his cold black eyes. Despite the fact that he was probably still very tired, his complexion was quite pale.

"Morning," the boy said. Hazel detected a trace of an Italian accent in his voice. "I'm Marco." He shrugged. "That's it."

"I'm Calypso Aradia," said Calypso, offering to shake hands. Marco simply looked over it.

"I'm Hazel Bonaparte," added Hazel, her voice light with shyness.

Marco raised an eyebrow, hands still in his pockets. "Bonaparte? As in Napoleon?" Hazel shrugged and shook her head no.

"Well, we're gonna be late. Let's head on to breakfast."

Breakfast was splendid, although nobody was really awake enough to have an appetite. Once the students finished up, the teachers split them by house and started the orientation.

The mentor for magic was a young man with dirty blonde hair. His eyes were a pale green, reflecting the sunlight off of them.

Calypso instantly recognized him. "Hey! It's you! The ghost from yesterday!"

It took no time for Hazel to see it too. "It's Mr. Alegor!" she whispered to Calypso.

"Yes, that is me!" Mr. Alegor exclaimed. "I'm your house leader. And I'll be your orientation guide today!" He pulled out a clipboard. "Hm, let's see. When I call your name, speak up. Hazel Penelope Bonaparte?"

Hazel didn't know what to say. "Yeah?"

"You're supposed to say 'here'," Calypso whispered. "Are you awake yet?"
"Uh, sorry. I guess not," Hazel replied. She wasn't too quick to tell her friend that she had never been to a real school before.

"So you're here. I was about to mark you absent!" Mr. Alegor laughed.

The list went on. Calypso Eris Aradia, Marco-Angelo di Genova, and Jason Alan Winston. Four people she had already met.

"Now that we have everyone, let's begin. As you can tell, we're currently at the cafeteria. The campus consists of an archery field, a sword fighting arena, a tool shed, running track, library, lake, and even a ballroom," Mr. Alegor announced. "Let's start with the archery field."

The archery field was about the size of half a football field, with targets planted everywhere. The field was lined with trees, which already had several arrows in them.

"The older students, you know? They never clean up after themselves," said Mr. Alegor. "But I'm sure you all would do a better job than them. There are arrows over there at the bench. You have thirty minutes to try and explore."