The Host of Hyperion

Chapter 1 - Elisabeth

           I wish I had known beforehand that waiting was not one of my strong suits. I didn't think that waiting for that girl to come out- I think her name was Kennedy- so that I could talk with the headmaster would make my nerves riot against me. My right knee bounced up and down to the rhythm of my racing heartbeat. 'Calm down Elisabeth. There is no need to get all panicky, it's just a meeting with the school headmaster, who may or may not expel you if you do something wrong... crap'.  I was so engrossed in my thoughts I didn't know that Kennedy had exited the office until I heard my name called. I jumped, almost falling out of the chair I had been sitting in.

"Ms. Elisabeth Askeland?"

"Y-yes that's me" I stuttered, straightening my hair.

"The headmaster will see you now."

"Alright," I grabbed my suitcase and walked into the headmaster's office.

    I walked to the center of the mahogany room and sat down in one of the velvet chairs in the center of the room. The office had the same look that the halls did, with a giant, life-size portrait of a cold looking middle aged man.  

"Ehem." I jumped fixing my eyes on the source of the noise. In the center of the room was a sand coloured desk littered with papers and pens with a silver plaque with words that read 'Headmaster Arthur Martinez'. "Hello Ms. Askeland, welcome to this fine establishment. I have your classes and your dorm room right here," He grabbed a short stack of papers, shuffled them and held them out for me to grab.

"Thank you," I grabbed the stack of papers from his outstretched hand. But he pulled them back before I can grab them.

"Just a few questions-if you don't mind." his voice didn't make it sound like a request.

"Sure I don't mind" I push a strand of hair behind my ear for the one thousandth time today.

"How many siblings do you have, Ms. Askeland?"

"I have two siblings"

"Elaborate. Boy or girls?"

"Both of my siblings are boys"

"Older or younger, miss?"

"One is older the other one is younger"

"Yes...hmm..do you have both of your parents?"

"No I do not"

"Which is gone? Mother or Father?"

"My mother"

"Ah... did you know your mother at all?" he pushed slightly.  

"No I didn't" I fidgeted in the chair.

"Hmm... where was it, again, where you are from?"

I narrowed my eyes, "Shouldn't that be on my papers?"

His cold, thin-lipped smile turned into a sneer.

"I wanted to hear myself. Besides, the papers only say where you were born, not where you lived previously. So I'll ask you again. Where are you from?"

"I'm from Oslo, Norway."

"Yes...Norway." he scribbled something down into a piece of paper, "One more thing. How did you come upon our quaint establishment? Why haven't your older brothers come?"

"My dad thought it would be a school for me but I think it's mostly because I cause too much trouble and I would ruin his image of 'family'"

He crossed his arms. A single strand fell out of his perfectly combed hair.

"And you are fully aware this school does not tolerate troublemakers? No matter how insistent the parentage?" his eyes gleamed.

"Well, I guess I better pack up my bags and get on the nearest train out of here. I'm like a trouble magnet," I chuckled trying to make myself less nervous

.

He did not smile. He let out a bark of cold laughter that didn't sound at all sincere.

"No worries, Ms. Askeland!" his mouth thinned into a harsh line, "This school will shape you just right."

His tone wasn't very light. He slid the file of papers towards me.

"These papers show where your classes are, where your dorm is and which classes you have. Just be sure to follow the rules and you should be fine here," he said with a cold smile. "Now head down to your dorm to get settled and head over to the cafeteria for dinner."

"Okay, thanks" I said nervously stuffing the papers I had acquired and walked out of the headmaster's office. I started walking down the hallway and released a sigh of relief. I continued walking until I reached the outside of the building. I turned the knob on the large glass doors and stepped outside the building. The minute I stepped out of the building, I felt a chill go up my spine. I glanced around the grounds and saw a group of what looked to be teachers surveying the students that walked back and forth on the grounds. One of the teachers snapped their head to look in my direction, as if they felt me watching, and stretched a thin smile across their lips and waved at me. My body tensed and I quickly walked in the direction which I hoped my dorm was, feeling their chilly gaze upon my back.

    I turned around to check to see if the person was still looking at me when I collided with something and fell backwards onto the sidewalk.

    "Ow-," I sat up rubbing my head. I looked up to see another one of those teachers that was watching the students on the campus.

    When I finally reached my dorm, I was shaking from the all the apprehension that I was feeling. I rushed into the building and slammed the door. I set down my suitcase and took out the papers. I shuffled through them until I found the paper with my dorm number and headed in search of my dorm room.

End of Chapter One