Sixteen-year-old June Bae may very well be your typical high school student, but the Rose Cross Academy is not your typical high school. Instead of history assignments and English papers, June trudges through Alchemy mixes and Demonology homework.
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Chapter 6
Elysium Blues
By Rissa Renae
Class ended with the long pulse of the dismissal bell. Yawning, June slammed his textbook shut and piled his binder atop it before shoving them both into his bag. In a serenade of chairs scraping across the linoleum floors, the balance of the class stood to their feet to begin the slow exodus from the classroom. Teams often had classes together and already, many were regrouping.
Dreamer Team One stood out from the other students, distinguished by Johann Rosenkreuz. Rising well over six-and-a-half feet tall, lanky Johann stood literally head-and-shoulders above the other students. He was not what June considered good-looking, but had piercing blue eyes and jet-black hair.
Petra Leonova was the only member of Team One to which June really paid attention. She had a pleasant and plump face despite the fact that she was a bit too thin for June's liking, but she was still pretty. Quiet and shy were her dominant traits, but June knew she was also well versed in hand-to-hand combat. More than a few had come back from the training grounds with black eyes and bloody noses after trying to take on Petra.
The last member of Team One, Jora Mathews, was a stout, athletic type. He played football with Jackson and his Riser team, which earned Jora a mark of demotion in June's book. Tall and muscular, Jora was one of the popular boys in the freshman class. Bleached blond hair contrasted his coffee-coloured skin and large dark eyes. As the class migrated towards the door, a few of the girls called out to Jora or rushed passed their teams to catch up with him. The girls laughed and giggled, and sparked up lively conversations. Jora, of course, accepted the attention with a grin.
June wriggled his nose and yawned, bumping into Noel. He earned an amused once-over from his best friend. "You look like death warmed over, buddy."
"Thanks." He snorted through his nose.
Noel slapped a hand hard on June's shoulder to begin herding him across the classroom towards Stella waiting patiently at the door. "You seem more tired than usual today. Was it the mission?"
"Not really." June wanted to point out that he had to run himself ragged for their latest mission, but Noel's worried expression kept the opinion down in his gut. Sure, he hadn't needed to be as showy as he'd been, but missions where you were able to let loose were few and far between. He'd thoroughly enjoyed the utter chaos they'd caused in the restaurant, but letting Noel know that would earn him a lengthy conversation about holding ones emotions in check during missions. "I've been studying a lot lately." That would hold him off for a bit.
Noel snorted as if he didn't believe that excuse at all.
Stepping out into the hall, they encountered the typical crossover traffic of the end of the last period of Riser classes and the first period of Dreamer classes. Students thronged the halls and lockers, conversing here and there in groups and moving like a giant mass with one mind.
