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Chapter 15

On Wednesday, I run into Rachel in the dining hall.

"Hey, Rachel." She's dressed in baggy jeans and a giant shirt with the words "Goblins=people." "Cute shirt."

She doesn't take her eyes off my face. "Thanks."

"I shouldn't keep you. Your friends must be waiting."

"Yeah," she snorts. "Sure."

She takes her food out of the dining hall.

I join my friends at our table.

"Who was that?" Axel points at the double doors of the dining hall.

"My second cousin, Rachel."

"A Harrington?" Michelle asks.

"Yeah. She's Caroline's little sister."

Everyone's eyes widen. "That's Caroline Harrington's sister?" Axel asks. "Wow."

"You guys know Caroline?" I'm shocked.

Paisley nods her head vigorously. "Yeah, I am obsessed with her. She's so pretty and she travels all over the world supporting causes she cares about. Just last week, she visited the guys who got attacked at the Commemoration Ceremony."

Michelle nods. "She's a major socialite. She's always in magazines and gives the best speeches."

I snort softly. "Okay, then."

"Wait, didn't you hang out with her this summer?" Ryan asks.

"At the equestrian thing." Paisley snaps her fingers. "You were there with Tristan and some other guy."

"I remember that." I take a long sip of juice.

Ryan smiles. "She was with Dillon Oisin. Did you guys see him at Milton's match?"

They all nod. "He was so good." Paisley moans.

"The technique he used made me want to be a Fire elemental," Axel says.

I groan. "Can we talk about something else? I do not want to relive my summer."

"We all watched the tournament on TV,' Sara says. "It wasn't exactly YOUR summer."

"I know that. It's just weird when you guys talk about stuff I was at these past three months."

The table goes silent.

"So we shouldn't talk about anything that happened over summer?" Sara asks.

"I didn't say that." I point out. "You know what. Just forget it." I get up. "I have to go to the bathroom."

I pick up my bag and abandon my tray with no intention of coming back.

I frown. Right now, Sara's probably talking about how I left my tray for them to clean up. I slam the dining hall door and head to my Potions class.

Twenty minutes to the end of lunch, I get a text from an unknown number. It reads:

For the next stage of your Initiation Process, bring me a Blue Rose. The Second scroll contains information on where they are hidden. Be warned, only seven are hidden on campus.

"Great," I say under my breath.

I don't have the second scroll with me so I wait till the end of school to have a look.

As soon as fifth period begins, Sara walks into class. She doesn't say anything to me, she just takes her seat.

We don't talk the entire hour.

The second the teacher dismisses us, I take my bag and stalk off to Biology.

In this class, we have to look through a microscope and spot the different genetic make-ups for combatants and different elementals.