Olympia Academy (Stray Kids)

Chapter Thirteen (Iris)

tw: talks about death

...

Iris sat in her room by herself, wondering what she should do. Selene had a study session planned with Artemis and Apollo, and Calliope was practicing singing with the other Muses. Besides Eos and Hypnos, she had not made many friends yet. Iris didn't feel comfortable with going to the first-year lounge alone to try and make some friends, so she decided it would be a good time to practice her goddess skills.

She had received a brief letter from the Elder Iris upon her arrival at Olympia Academy that gave the basic details of the rainbow-creation ritual. Iris figured that the beautiful Saturday morning was a perfect time to try the ritual.

But where should I go? she wondered, closing the door to her room behind her. She walked through the hallways, passing hardly any students. She knew it was a good time to sneak away from the academy and to somewhere more private. Iris crept out the back doors of the school and ran for the woods.

Birds chirped happily in the trees above her as she walked. Dirt from the path sprang onto her bare toes as her sandals hit the earth. Iris looked around her, searching for a stream or small pond. She continued walking, making it as far as the sharp corner that she and Hermes had casually deemed 'their meeting spot.'

As she approached the corner, she saw a flicker of reflected sunlight from the trees to her left. She paused, hearing the faintest flowing sound. She darted past roots and weeds as she walked through the thick trees to reveal a stream, just a few feet wide, winding between the towering pines and oaks. This will be perfect, she thought, sitting on the mossy ground.

Iris tucked her curly hair behind her ear and pulled the letter from a pocket in her skirt. She carefully read her Elder's words but found that no directions on how to begin a ritual were stated. 

Iris pouted, had she come all this way and was not able to do anything? She sat and stared at the stream, contemplating what she should do next.

While she was deep in thought, a sudden noise broke through the calmness of the woods. She heard a yelp and the sound of a body hitting the ground. Iris turned around in a panic and saw a familiar body on the ground a few trees away from the stream.

"What the... Hermes? Are you okay?" she asked, standing and noticing the boy from Persephone Academy sprawled on the ground. 

He stood up with a huff and brushed the dirt and moss from his clothes. "Oh, hello Iris. I didn't expect to see you here," he said, checking his bare arms for any cuts.

"You either," she replied, eyeing him. "You have a twig... in your hair," she said awkwardly, pointing to his head.

Hermes pulled the twig out of his black hair and tossed it behind him. He looked down and gasped.

"Where did that letter go?" He frantically searched the ground around him. He dug through a pile of leaves near the base of the tree he fell from and smiled in relief when he pulled out a piece of paper.

"Reading the mail again?" Iris said, crossing her arms.

"Eh, maybe," he replied nonchalantly, tucking the paper into the pocket of his black uniform. He paused, stepping towards her. "And what do you think you're doing away from school?" he asked. He adjusted his bangs away from his eyes.

"Well, to be honest," Iris replied, shuffling her feet to back away from him a step. "I'm attempting to learn how to make rainbows."

"Ah, I see. I knew you didn't look familiar," Hermes grinned, sitting next to the stream. He dipped his hand into the water and swirled it around, creating a mini whirlpool.