Feud

Dracula Academy

  Lucy fought to keep her eyes open. At the airport in Bucharest, Lucy, Ellie, and Isaac boarded a bus that was specially chartered to take them to Dracula Academy. Their connection in Paris had been delayed, so their flight got in to Bucharest later than originally planned. It was now late at night and the Romanian countryside was blanketed by inky blackness.

Suddenly the bus jolted, and Lucy snapped her eyes open. "What the-" Lucy blurted.
"Lucy! We're here," Isaac said. The sky was now painted in the vivid colors of sunrise.
Isaac and Ellie were getting up from their seats on the bus, along with a few other people. For a few minutes Lucy did not realize where she was.

"How long was I out?" she finally asked while walking down the middle aisle of the bus.

"Last two hours of the drive," Isaac replied.

They exited the bus, collected their bags, and started walking up the hill to the school. The hill Dracula Academy was built upon was more like a small mountain. Approaching from the front, one had the impression that they were not very high up, but on the other side of the school there was a sheer cliff face. Part of the Academy's complex was built underground, mainly the dormitories for the vampires, so window slits were hidden in the shadowy bits of said cliff. Buses and other vehicles had a hard time getting up to the Academy because of the protective spells cast by an ancient group of sirens. Students either had to walk from the town at the bottom of mountain, or rent a horse and/or cart to ride up the mountain.

In their sophmore year at Dracula Academy, it had become tradition for Lucy and Isaac to race up the mountain carrying their luggage on their backs. So after they retrieved their luggage from where it had been stowed on the bus, Lucy put her backpack on her shoulders, Isaac tied to his back with a piece of rope, and Ellie dropped a bandanna to start the race.

Taking into consideration that both Lucy and Isaac could run at superhuman speeds, the normally hour long walk took just over 3 minutes. After the crossed they crossed under the arch in the gates, the usual argument over who won the race began.

"You know, it was zhe both of you that won," a voice approaching from the left said.

Lucy smiled at the sight of her roommate. "Bonjour, Amalie," she greeted. "How'd you know?"

The blonde newcomer her phone. "I took a slow-motion video. You two crossed at zhe exact same time. Watch it if you don't believe me."

Isaac and Lucy walked over to where Amalie was standing.

"Okay, how are we going to settle this?" Isaac asked after watching the video multiple times.

"Well the record stands at one me, one you, one tied" Lucy said. "How about, if you beat me coming back from Christmas break, I'll say you win."

"I'll take that," Isaac agreed. "Where's Ellie?"

"I'm right behind you," Ellie called out breathing heavily. "How do you two run so fast? I could barely keep up."

"Practice," Isaac and Lucy said simultaneously.

Amalie tapped on Isaac's shoulder. "You 'ave not introduced me to your sister. Zhis is Ellie?"

"Oh, right," Isaac said sheepishly, "Amalie, meet my younger sister Ellie. Ellie meet Amalie Mercier."

Amalie enthusiastically hugged and kissed Ellie on the cheek. "It is good to finally meet you in person, non? Isaac and Lucy have talked so much about you."

Lucy, Amalie, and Isaac started walking in the direction of the dormitory buildings with Ellie trailing behind. Eclectic would be a word to describe the campus of Dracula Academy. The old romanesque castle took up most of the campus. The vampire king and his family still lived in the castle, which was their ancestral home. Newer buildings, used for dormitories, offices, and athletic facilities, had been constructed in various styles over the decades.

Amalie and Lucy had their dorm in the main dormitory. Isaac had his dorm in a smaller building next to the main one. When the small group reached the main building, Isaac took Ellie to the office so that Ellie could check in and receive her dorm assignment.

When Lucy and Amalie reached their third-floor room, Lucy dumped her backpack at the foot of her bed and then flopped down on the bed herself. Lucy decorated her dorm room similarly to her bedroom in West Virginia. A black comforter patterned with red roses covered black sheets and a pillow. A simple writing desk with a cheap CD player on it sat quietly in the corner next to a storage tower of rock CDs from the 90s to early 2000s. Band and movie posters covered the dorm's only window.

"Rough trip?" Amalie asked after she sat down on her own bed. Amalie's side of the room was the complete opposite of Lucy's. Amalie's bedspread was lilac and pink candy striped and covered pink sheets. A mountain of smaller, lacy pillows threatened to fall onto the floor. The contents of a small shoe store lined the wall from Amalie's bed to the door. Amalie had a larger desk with cosmetics, hair styling tools, paper, and colored pencils neatly organized on top, along with a large wall mounted vanity mirror.

"I really do not want to be here," Lucy groaned. "School starts in, what, five days? Why are we here this early?"

"Jacques brought his 'movies of the world' collection if your bored."

"Maybe tomorrow. Right now I just wanna get settled in."

Lucy got up off of the bed and unpacked the things that were in her backpack. Mostly the backpack held the small library Lucy carried with her, but there were a few sets of clothes and pajamas. Students at Dracula Academy were made to wear a uniform, and Lucy kept all of her uniform sets at school, so she never had to bring many clothes. However, her makeup and toiletries that weren't mailed ahead were in the large suitcase that was with Isaac and Ellie.

After unpacking her backpack, Lucy changed into black skinny jeans, a short black lace dress, and her signature black leather jacket. She left the room and went to the dining hall, which was located in the castle, to see if any food was being served. The morning was warm enough that Lucy didn't necessarily need the jacket, but she put is on out of habit. She also adjusted her eyepatch. During her race with Isaac it had gotten pushed aside.

Walking across the courtyard gave Lucy a chance to think. She didn't have much of a plan for what she would do after graduation next summer. More than likely she would end up taking odd jobs as a hunter, like her uncle was. Isaac talked about going to college, getting a degree in business, and opening his own martial arts studio. Part of Lucy wanted to have a like like that. It was safe. She wouldn't have to watch her back worrying about a coven of vampires wanting revenge on her for killing one of their members.

Another part of Lucy wanted something more, but she had no idea what that something more was. She knew she would not be satisfied with a safe and comfortable life, and she also didn't really want the loneliness that came with being a hunter. A handful of other students were also milling about in the courtyard. Lucy knew most of their names, and if she didn't know their name, Lucy knew their faces.

***

Lucy knocked on the door to Isaac's dorm. "Isaac, I need my stuff," she said.

"In a minute," Isaac called back.

"I brought you a muffin."

After a small crash and Isaac saying ow, the door in front of Lucy opened. "Is there really a muffin?" he asked.

"Yes," said Lucy, laughing softly. "Here, take it. It's blueberry."

Isaac took the muffin and bit into it. "Comf inf," he mumbled. The look of Isaac's dorm room was decidedly different from Lucy's. The layouts were the same, twin beds and a closet for each occupant on opposite sides of the room, but Isaac's room had a window, and Lucy's dorm was slightly bigger because she and Amalie had a private bathroom. It was harder to distinguish the different sides of the rooms, however. Isaac and his roommate Tatsuo were more similar in decorating tastes. Isaac's bed had a simple blue and white comforter and white sheets. Both boys had push their desks into the corners to make as much floor space as possible.

"How's Ellie doing?" Lucy inquired after she had grabbed her things from the open suitcase on Isaac's bed.

"Well, her dorm's on the complete other side of campus, so she's nervous about being away from us."

"Okay, is she really nervous or are you projecting your nervousness onto her?

"Both," Isaac admitted.

"Remember big guy, she's growing up. She's gonna need to learn how to handle freedom. You're going to be off at college next year anyways, so you won't be able to protect her anyways." Lucy left and closed the door after giving Isaac a quick hug.

***

After putting her things away, Lucy wandered the campus observing the goings-on until evening. It was almost part of her nature as a hunter to make sure nothing was immediately about to go wrong. She ended up at her preferred place to sit and watch the happenings of the forest below, one of towers in the castle wall. If she focused she could see insects walking along a branch or vehicles traveling in the distance. Focusing one of her senses caused her other senses to fade into the background, making it easy for a careful person to get the drop on Lucy.

Coughing alerted Lucy to the presence of another person after an hour of quiet observation.

"Hello, Jacques," Lucy sighed.

"Bonsoir, ma cherie," Jacques greeted.

"You only actively seek me out when you're hiding or when you want something," Lucy stated dryly.
"Which one is it this time?"

Jacques grinned sheepishly. "Uhm, both?"

"Do I wanna know?"

"I may 'ave switched Amalie's moisturizing cream with cream cheese."

Lucy sighed. "What's the other thing?"

Jacques sat down next to Lucy. "Isaac's birthday is coming up, and I wanted to do something for him, but I don't have any ideas. I was wondering if you could 'elp me."

"Why would you come to me for help?"

Jacques looked at Lucy incredulously. "Lucy, you know Isaac better than anyone else in our group. Why would I not come to you for help?"

"Well," Lucy started, "The Wrights have this tradition for when one of their kids turns 18. They invite every werewolf pack in the area over to their house for a bonfire, and have a huge barbeque, so maybe we could do something like that."

"I think I see where you are going," Jacques interrupted. "It would just be you, me, Isaac, Amalie, and Tatsuo, we could get some beer, wine, and snacks from town and have a party out in the woods."

"Considering where we are, I don't think having a party out in the woods is a good idea." Lucy said.

"We find a location near a stream, and everything will be alright, non?"

"What happens when we want to leave? We'd be trapped there if a bloodsucker showed up."

"Lucy, I highly doubt that a vampire will crash our little party."

"Fine," Lucy sighed as she stood up. "But if anything happens, I told you so. Also, I don't appreciate having to deal with Amalie after your prank. Not that I don't think it's funny."



"Goodnight, Lucy," Jacques said before going off to who knows where.

"G'night, Jacques," Lucy called after him.