Justice Eternal

13 - Day One

Despite having been dreading the Summons for a long time, Justice was giddy on the inside. She stood beside Riley, Baulder, Ben, Tora and sixteen other fledglings beneath an already warm morning sun. They were in a large grassy courtyard on the eastern side of the barracks.  A high stone wall surrounded them, with arches on two sides that led through to more training yards like this one. Through an arch, Justice could see a group similar to theirs awaiting instructions.

It was the first day of preparations for their personal trials, and Justice couldn't believe how much the summons had made her forget that the whole purpose of coming here was to go through Elysium, and unlock her supernatural powers.

She shoved her hands in her pockets in an effort to calm the desire to bounce on her toes. Baulder gave her a sidelong glance and she met his eyes to find there a playful glint. She grinned at him, and with a smile he lent sideways and bumped their shoulders together.

"You look like you're about to burst out of your skin," he said.

"I think I might," she laughed.

"That would be an interesting mess to heal."

She opened her mouth give a witty retort just as there was a loud hand clap from the front.

"Fledglings. Your attention please." A thin elderly woman with dark skin and long grey braid over her shoulder addressed them in a thick South African accent. A hush fell over the teens. "My name is Thalente and I'll be your guide for the next four months. Take a good look at those around you, because this will be who you will study and train with from now until the tournaments."

There was a rustle and everyone took a moment to glance around the courtyard at the other members present. Justice suddenly noticed Delphine, who's short frame had been obstructed from view until now. She smiled and craned her neck to see if Anton was beside her.

Again, he was absent.

She hoped that nothing bad had happened to him but she refrained from making her way over to the girl. She didn't want to offend her a second time by only talking to her to ask about her warden. With a sigh, Justice turned back to Thalente.

"I have here a list, please call 'present', when you hear your name." She looked down a clipboard. "Baulder Anastas?"

"Present."

A murmur rippled through the class and sixteen pairs of eyes turned to stare at their prince. Sometimes Justice forgot how big of a deal he was. As she surveyed those looking in their direction, she was suddenly aware of how many were female. And, of the way some of them looked at him. It was an appraising head-to-toe-and-back-up-again look. She laughed inwardly and turned to gauge his reaction.

It was true that he was handsome. Dark hair swept sideways across his face, often catching in the long lashes over his equally dark eyes. He was tall, lean from his years as a swimmer, and held himself straight with a quiet confidence that she'd always admired. He gave nothing away and simply smiled politely at the onlookers.

She could not imagine him being interested in any of them, and she felt smug for knowing this. It would take a lot for anyone to pique the interest of the ever evenly-tempered and impossible-to-impress prince. In fact, he'd not had any romantic relationship for her to know where this mark lay.

There had been one summer where he'd spent a lot of time with a quiet Japanese girl, whose name Justice couldn't remember. But, whether it has been any more than a friendship, she'd not been able to tell. Baulder never spoke of her and Justice hadn't felt that he'd appreciate her prying. And, there was no way she'd ever make a joke to him about it. In the same way that he never spoke of her many boyfriends, she'd never commented on his summer with that one girl.