Terra (The Vulgari Hybrids, #1) ✔

3|Scarborough|

| Lia |

Grimacing at the paper that was staring back at me, I blinked twice, hoping that the words on my schedule would magically rearrange themselves so that Cassy and I would share classes. But no matter how many times I fluttered my lids like crazy, it still showed the same words and numbers. Just great.

Cassy was still looking over her schedule when I sighed loudly, causing her to look up and arch a delicate dark eyebrow towards me.

"Well, I guess I have to see you later," I grumbled.

Cassy smirked. "You shouldn't have separation anxiety. You're not a toddler anymore."

I scrunched my nose and made a face. "Just go already."

Cassy waved her hand and ambled towards her first class, like she didn't even care that we were parting ways for the first time ever.

I checked my schedule again and studied the labels of each passing door. When I reached my class, my heart started to race and my palms felt like faucets dripping with unwanted sweat.

Breathe in. Breathe out. It's okay, Lia.

I made a quick scan of the room. It was a standard classroom with a white board in front, about thirty chairs, and the usual set-up of students cluttered in groups and happily chatting with each other. I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't anywhere near Potterland. But normal was good. Normal was welcoming. Numerous pairs of eyes darted to me when I took my first step inside. Silence descended among them and I began the awkward walk to the far end of the room, plopping my ass into a vacant chair.

I felt the stares of my classmates practically boring into my skin, their curiosity at the New Girl bubbling in whispers and nudges. I took a deep breath, opened my bag, grabbed my headphones and tuned out everyone. I was not here to make friends.

Tapping my foot to the rhythm of the music, it took a good three songs before the teacher─a middle-aged woman with ash brown hair─entered the room. It was hard to guess the real age of an Ilwani as compared to the human aging process, but if I would guess, I would say she was at least one hundred fifty years old.

I removed my headphones and tucked it inside my bag. Twenty minutes in, I was fighting a yawn and thinking about a boy with dazzling blue eyes and long hair the color of chocolate.

His image teased my mind all throughout two more classes about mana control and spells for dummies. I even got scolded for my wandering mind on the third class and even more when I told my teacher that the only spell I know was the technique to change my clothes into the most trendy ones. Surviving that, I was glad that my afternoon schedule was meant for personal training and thankfully, Cassy had the same. I met her at the main building's entrance. Instead of training, we walked in silence to our car, and proceeded to the Ilwani dorm. 

My eyes were glued out the window the entire time. Mesina was a sharp contrast from our simple life in Minnesota. It was a city hidden from the rest of the world. I felt like we'd shifted from Muggle world into a land of fantasy. The road to the dorms provided me with a view of the Syren building, standing tall in crystalline blue, its walls reflecting the undulating movement of the water from the shimmering lake adjacent to it. A dome-like structure was peeking from the Syren building and based on the Mesina map that we'd studied before, I gathered it was the East Fighting Arena. It was one of the things that made me eager to attend the academy ─ the opportunity to break bones and be a total badass.