Academy Supernatural

Chapter 5

The next hour or so was spent unpacking and making my new room feel a little bit more like home. I hadn't been able to bring much besides a couple of cheap posters, but I made do. A couple was better than none at all. I also hung up some of my various drawings that I made through the years. It made me smile to remember the times I had drawn each and every one of them. Some of them meant a lot to me. They were like a treasured family photograph, but without the backstabbing people in the background. Maybe I should frame some of them.

I was just unpacking my shirts from my suitcase into my dresser when I heard a thump on the wall next to me, coming from the hallway outside. Odd. Maybe one of the students knocked into the wall. Probably nothing to worry about. With a shrug, I went back to my suitcase. Then there was another bang, louder this time and further down the wall. This time I stood up, annoyed by the disturbance. Who the hell...? I went over to my bedroom door and opened it, peeking out into the hallway. At first, I saw nothing, but then I heard another thud and turned to see an old guy stumbling around with a mop. My eyebrows drew together as I watched him sway from side to side and groan. It was one of the janitors. He looked like he'd had one too many. Was he drunk?

"Stay away from the janitors, they're not especially merciful to your kind."

I went to call out to him and tell him he shouldn't be working like that, but Barry's words rang in my head like a gong and I turned away. Maybe I should just leave him be. It wasn't any of my business anyway. Deciding that was for the best, I went back into my room and closed the door. It was strange to think that an expensive establishment such at this would have employees that would get totally smashed before work, but then again, maybe this place wasn't as great as everyone thought. With that thought in mind, I went back to unpacking.

I hadn't intended to go down for dinner that night. It would be best if I got myself unpacked before classes started in the morning. It would be a pain if I was trying to unpack and do my homework at the same time. However, around 7:00pm someone rapped at my door. Since I was just in the middle of making my bed with my own sheets, I huffed irritably. What horrible timing. I walked over to the door and opened it. "Hello?"

To my pleasant surprise, I found a short blonde-haired girl, a little younger than I, standing there. She had on a long, white-gray dress that covered her feet. The sleeves also extended over he wrists. To be honest, she was kind of cute. Upon a closer look, I also realized she was one of the girls that had been sitting on the chandelier before. Screaming, if I remembered correctly. I glanced around the hall. "Can I help you?" I asked, smiling politely.

She crossed her arms and turned away. Her hair fluttered around her shoulders like lace as she narrowed her eyes at me. "The baron has asked me to make sure you make it to dinner," she replied coolly.

Scratch cute. This girl was weird. "Thanks, but you can tell him I'm not hungry," I said, hoping to get her out of my hair as quickly as possible.

She turned back to me, her expression turning even more sour than before. "He says it's not optional. You will attend dinner."

Something about her tone of voice game me chills and I blinked, feeling like someone had sent a small electric shot through my body. Maybe I shouldn't argue. Quickly, I reached around my door and grabbed my jacket. After slipping it on, I followed the girl down the hall. Without a word, she lead me down to the second floor and into a large dining hall. There were many students already seated. They talked loudly, filling the space with noisy chatter as they enjoyed their dinner. As Barry had said, there weren't many free seats left, and most seemed to be near unfriendly characters.

The girl eyed me as I looked around the room, but when I glanced at her she turned and walked away, going to sit with a group of girls all dressed very similar to her. Once I was alone, I felt very exposed standing by the doors, so I quickly went to the nearest, most empty table, and sat down quietly. Well, even if I wasn't hungry, sitting and observing my surroundings wasn't a bad idea.