Nightingale Academy

It seems that sticking letters into the door jam hadn't been a good idea. When I came home on Friday morning after buying breakfast I had a stern talking to that awaited me. Only after my mum had dried her tears and my dad had called the police to let them know that I was home and safe was I able to lead them to their room where the letter lay on the floor.
I had spent my whole weekend in the apartment, unpacking boxes and putting everything in their rightful places. My mum and dad helped when they could but had to go down to the bakery most days. Right now, the business was more important. Without it, how are we supposed to make money and feed ourselves?

As the days passed I became more and more excited about the new school. It almost seemed foolish of me to have been so sad about leaving my old school. Now I was going to a brilliant and better one that was private and had excellent teachers.

My parents were glad that I was finally happy and naturally became happier themselves. My mum was only slightly upset that I wouldn't be coming home every night but she excepted that fact the moment she sent an application for me to the school.

Right now I was in the car with my parents heading to the school. It was only Monday but the headmaster had said it would be clever to come on Monday to unpack and make myself comfortable before my actual classes started. The car ride was about an hour and this time I stared out the window and watched the scenery fly by me. I had to admit, the city can be a beautiful thing. Especially when it's going by fast and you're heading away from it. The thought made me snicker.

Less sunlight was present the farther away we moved from the city and closer we drove to the academy but looking at the sky, I was nearly sure that the stars would be visible by twilight.

The academy came into view minutes later. It stood tall and medieval. The school itself was red brick while the dormitories were separate buildings behind the school. I sighed contently. This was going to be my new school. New home.

My dad parked outside of a building farthest from the school. They got out and I grabbed my bags out from the seat next to me.

“This is it.” I said.

My mum sighed and smiled at me. “We're going to miss you. But you'll call, right?”

“Of course.” I laughed. I would get throttled if I cut connections with my parents off for even a day.

“And you'll come on weekends.” My mum was starting to sound like she was consoling herself rather then me. He peeked at my dad while my mum threw herself on me. He winked and grinned, understanding my discomfort.

“My turn to say good-bye, Felicia.” He pulled me into a tight embrace and whispered in my hair, “You've been working hard all your life, Lilith. Take this time to let loose and have some fun for once, huh?”
I nodded and smiled when he pulled away. “The headmaster said to make yourself comfortable first in your dorm and then go over to his office to pick up your schedule and uniform.”

“Uniform?” There was nothing on the site about a uniform.

Bill laughed and kissed my forehead before he climbed back into the car. My mum gave me one last bone-crushing hug and climbed in after him. I put on a smile and waved as they drove away. Then I turned and made my way up the few steps. I stood in front of he door for a few seconds, contemplating on whether I should knock or just go in. As I was raising my hand to either knock or grasp the handle, I did not know, the door flung open on its own and a magnificently tanned and impish face stared out at me excitedly.

“Are you the new kid!?” She hopped in place behind the door and I nodded. I was in shock. From the sudden movement or from the girl's eyes, I was not sure. It could have been both. The girl had the most vibrant blue eyes I had ever seen.

The girl squealed and reached a hand out, grasping my own, and pulled me in. She giggled and apologized as I lost balance. She held onto my waist and grinned down at me. “You're my room mate! My name is Azure.” Azure; French for sky blue. How absolutely befitting.

I regained composure and smiled. She was a bit chaotic. All over the place, I could already tell, but I felt drawn to her. She wasn't like most annoying girls that I had in classes back in my old school. She looked pure. Like she was being herself and that's all that mattered. “Hey, I'm Lilith.”

“Lilith. How pretty.” She smiled, her eyes twinkling. “Let me take you to our room. Oh! First I should quickly introduce you to everyone! Don't worry. There's only 30 of us and most of them are in the living area.” The hyper imp dragged me into a room where everyone was seated either watching the tele or just talking. “Guys! Look what I found!” She had taken my duffel bag away from me and held onto it, making it look like it was filled with feathers rather than books and clothing. “Her name is Lilith and she's the new student. Lilith,” she finally addressed me and took a deep breath as if she was going to recite a speech in one breath. “On the couch is Aaron, Garrett and Quinn. Floor are twins Hayden and Haven, and Perla, Joselin and Madison. Computers are Matt, Oliver and Phillip. Rachel, Dakota, Wynona and Bert are the ones playing chess. Ryan, Davi, Steven and Kye are by the tele. And everyone else doesn't matter that much.” Azure smiled brightly at me, the corners of her eyes crinkling. She looked stunning enough for the air in my throat to catch.

The dorm mates who I was just introduced to waved and smiled my way. I gave them a shy wave back before a voice came from behind me, making me jump.

“Are you trying to say that I don't matter, Azure?”

I turned around even though Azure was the one addressed. My eyes locked with ones much like Azure's but belonging to a boy that looked about the age of 23. My breath got caught in my mouth as I recognized the person. He had been across the street from me a few days prior. His stare had left a permanent trail from the small of my back to my neck.

Next to me, Azure rolled her eyes and smirked. “Lilith this is my-”

“Nuh-uh, Azure,” the boy interrupted, eyes not leaving mine. I checked to make sure I was still breathing as his hand reached for mine. “You had your chance. I'll introduce myself.” His fingers grasped my elbow and as he pulled my hand closer to him, they slid down till my hand was in his. “I'm Azure's twin, Amaranth.”

I smiled at the name. “Greek for immortal and unfading.”

“Excuse me?” He looked a bit shocked.

I blushed having not realized that I said that out loud. “I meant, that's what your names means. Immortal. In ancient Greet mythology, an amaranth was an eternally-blooming flower.” I looked down at my hand, still held in his. “I'm Lilith.”

“And what does Lilith mean?”

I looked up to see him playfully smirking. He was teasing but in a nice way that made me feel...a floaty feeling. It was nice. I smiled back at him. “Of the night.”

His brow raised and he smiled. Such vivid blue eyes. So much like his twin sister's. Their hair both a dark brown that would make my already blonde hair look like gold compared to theirs. Their dark skin was tanned and dark. I wondered where they had gotten so tan and whether their eyes would dull as soon as their skin will. I stared up at Amaranth calculating how tall he could be. His sister had to be about 5 foot 4 but he looked so much taller, even compared to her.

“Okay, let go of my new best friend so I can take her to our room!” Azure complained next to me. She took my hand from Amaranth's and at that moment I decided that Azure and I wouldn't get along. Not one bit. But she pulled me away from her gorgeous twin brother and up a flight of stairs until we reached the top. As she directed me to our room, she pointed out bathrooms and warned me not to go to the boy's because they 'are dirty, rotten pigs.' Her words, not mine. When she opened a door labelled 20 she set my duffel bag down beside a bed.

“We've actually got more rooms for people that want to have their own but since the headmaster thinks it's not fair for people that want their own rooms to have them while the other's have to share, he banned the idea and locked the doors to all rooms not in use.” She collapsed on a bed covered in a pink comforter and yawned. “It's been a long day.”

I stood their awkwardly staring at my own bed. It had a pink comforter on as well and it looked fluffy and soft. It would be something nice to cuddle to while I read or studied.

“Are you not tired at all? The drive from New York to here must have been long.” It seemed everyone already knew everything about the new girl.

I shrugged and sat down on the bed. “It was only an hour.”

Azure nodded and lied on her side, staring up at me. “Do you need help unpacking?” she offered.

I smiled and shook my head. “I'm fine on my own. Do we share a closet?”

Azure got off her bed, grinning. “Yeah, we do. But it's really big so don't worry. C'mon. Let's unpack a few of these things and then later you'll probably want to go to the headmaster's office.”

Azure helped me unpack my clothing and possessions, making it twice as fast then it originally would have been. When we were done she locked elbows with me and I smiled, deciding I liked Azure again.

She led me down the stair case and past the living area where I felt eyes on me again. This time several others had joined the pair that had been there originally. I ignored them until I was outside and the stares were gone. Well, all but one. It made me feel self-conscious. I didn't like that feeling because I had never had to feel it. This new school and these new kids were so different then those of my old one. They didn't look like they were judging me. They just gave this weird presence. It lured me and I couldn't help it.

“Azure?” I asked quietly.

She mummed a response and continued walking at a steady pace, elbows still locked with mine.

“Is there someone behind us?”

“Mhm,” she agreed nonchalantly, making me feel childish.

“Uhm,” I started. “Who?”

“My brother?”

Duh. “Why?”

Now Azure was grinning. “'Cause he likes you, silly.”

We were now on the steps of the school. She pulled me up, her taking two at a time while I swiftly skipped up each one. My legs weren't long enough to do more than one. She continued pulling me till we were in front of the door to the headmaster's office. Azure rapped her knuckles against the door lightly and grinned when she heard the baritone voice begging entrance from behind the door. She pushed the door open and beckoned me to go in first. I slid in and looked back to watch her close the door behind her and step into the room further. To be truthful, I was a bit nervous.

Azure smiled reassuringly to me and shifted her eyes to look behind me. I looked over as well and locked eyes with the headmaster.

“You must be Miss Globe. Take a seat, please.” He sure looked nice enough. His eyes were much like Azure's and her brother's. Not the colour, just the vividness. Unlike their electric blue, Headmaster Bergen had deeply coloured dark eyes, hint of burgundy flashing around the irises and along the the pupil. He sent a genuine smile my way, eyes warming my being. I shyly smiled back.

“Pleasure to meet you, Headmaster.” What else was I supposed to say? I instantly felt embarrassed and felt myself turn red as the headmaster chuckled.

“Pleasure's all mine. I couldn't wait to meet you! Your grades are absolutely exquisite! I didn't think such a human with such a fantastic GPA existed.” He chuckled and a wary look flashed across his face like he let something slip and then cleared his throat. “Anyway, I should probably hand you your schedule and make sure you find your dorm and fellow scholars befitting and pleasant. Just one second.”

He disappeared behind his grand oak desk and rummaged through his drawers. I looked over to Azure and she grinned, rolling her eyes. He mumbled things about forgetfulness and lack of organization until he finally made himself visible yet again and grinned at me. He pushed a large envelope into my hands and hid behind his desk yet again. He came back up quicker this time and lifted a medium sized box up onto the desk. It thunk against the wood loudly as it was dropped. “It's a bit heavy so be sure not to drop it or hurt yourself.” He patted the top of the box and smiled. “This here contains your uniform, gym clothes, swimming suit, school sweaters, ect. On Fridays we permit students to dress down and wear what they please as long as it is not offensive or too revealing.” He made a unrecognisable face and then chuckled. “I hope I wont have much problems with you, Miss Globe. You already are a very bright student with top marks in your classes, though you haven't started yet. I hope you enjoy life here in Nightingale and don't hesitate to visit or drop a word if you have any concerns.”

I smiled at the kind man in front of me. He was no more than thirty and he had an eternal youthful glow to him. I felt comfortable with him already and that was something that I have never felt towards most of my teachers. The students and people here are so different, so fascinating. I felt unnaturally drawn to them.

“Thank you, Headmaster. I wont hesitate.”

He chuckled again, wind chimes sounding off from his mouth. “That's what I'd like to hear.” He now turned his attention to Azure. “You take care of her, Miss Klynski. It's not everyday that we get new students. We'd like to keep this one.” His eyes twinkled and Azure smiled back and nodded. She picked up the box off of his desk and looped her elbow with mine.

“No problem, Headmaster. See you at lunch!”

She dragged me out of the room, the box at her side, her expression giving away no discomfort or impression whether the box was as heavy as the headmaster said or not. The loud thud the box had made when it was dropped onto the desk said otherwise.

“You're going to love it here, Lilith. I just know it. Nightingale was the best thing that happened to my brother and me. I know you'll enjoy it here too.”

Azure rambled on and I followed next to her, nearly sprinting to keep up and keep my arm intact with the rest of my body. She had a death grip on my arm and it was painfully pressed into her side.

“Azure!” I turned my attention away from the pain in my arm and over to the stairs of my new dorm, a place I would learn to call home soon, and let my eyes rest on a two pretty girls. One with glowing brown eyes and light brown hair twisted in a sloppy braid behind her head, making her give off an illusion of being of a different decade. She looked like a beautiful hippy, leaning against a brick medieval castle. The other girl was blonde with blue eyes. Not nearly as stunning as Azure or the other girl but I was sure that if she was put to the side without the other two to compare her to, she would be considered gorgeous. But it was hard work looking gorgeous and pretty when Azure was grinning happily and hopping on the balls of her feet, vibrant blue eyes shining against her tan skin.

“Let go of the poor girl! You're suffocating her arm. Her hand is turning purple!” The brunette exclaimed, looking slightly panicked. Azure's wide blue eyes look down at my arm, mouth agape.

“Oh, Lilith! I'm so sorry!” She lets go of my arm immediately and it falls to my side. I look at it, not one bit surprised that it is indeed an unnatural shade of purple and relish in the feeling of gaining circulation back in it. “You should have said something! I don't know my own strength and I forget sometimes. Oh, I'm so sorry.”

I massage my fingers and chuckle. “It's okay,” I say.

And it really was. Azure, Amaranth, and the brunette have some kind of hold on me. I can't explain it but when I look into their eyes, I feel safe and...Well I feel like I can trust them. I don't think I've ever felt trust towards a person before. At least not someone that either gave birth to me or gave me my name.

The brunette sighed and rolled her eyes. She glared at Azure for a second before looking back at me and smiling. “Perhaps it's time for a proper introduction. I'm Haven and this is Wynona.” She pointed to herself and then to the blonde as she got off her seat on the stoop. She stuck her arm out for me to shake and I made a motion to move my arm. Instead it continued to limply hang off of my shoulder and I felt my cheeks burn up. How embarrassing.

Haven and Wynona laughed while Azure guiltily looked down at my arm. Haven wrapped her arms around me in an embrace instead and continued giggling. Wynona hugged me after Haven let go and I used my other hand to pat them on the back. “Welcome to the Nightingale Family, Lilith.”

I smiled back at her and shyly gave her my thanks before Azure took hold of my arm. I wanted to pull it away from her but the feeling of danger and fear was swept away immediately until I could only feel calm and the coolness of her fingertips gliding around my skin, lightly massaging my arm.

“I'm so sorry, Lilith.” She frowned as she continued to inspect my arm. I realized that that was what she was doing when she gingerly flipped my arm around a few times, looking for broken bones? “I think it's going to swell,” she mumbled morosely. I understood she was sorry and I wanted to assure her I didn't care. That it was okay. But she grabbed my other hand and pulled me closer to her. She wrapped her arm around my shoulders and threw the box over to Haven before taking the folder I was still holding and giving it to Wynona. “I'll take her to the nurse for an ice pack. Just take that to our room. Please and thank you.”

She led me away from the two girls and back to the main building again. “I'm so sorry about this, Lilith.” She let out a frustrated breath as she climbed the stairs, slower this time so I could keep pace with her. We re-entered the building and passed the headmaster's room and a few classrooms until we reached the end of a hallways and she opened a door that ready Infirmary. Why Infirmary, I don't know, but it sure sounded more serious than a school nurse. I nurse in a regular daily dress looked up from her magazine and smiled.

“What may I help you with? Ah, is this a new student?”

Azure nodded and answered for me. “This is Lilith Globe. Lilith, this is Nurse Drowing but-”

“But you can call me Tily.” She smiled sweetly. “Now is there anything I can do for you?”

I raised my arm. It had gained back its circulation and feeling but now I could feel the throbbing and see the swelling. I knew I was small and Azure was a lot more taller than me, but I hadn't realized that someone could do that to me so easily. Yet, I still felt comfortable around Azure. No doubt I found that strange. Especially when I spent all my life shrinking away from other people and closing myself off into myself. Now it felt like all those years didn't exist and never had happened. Maybe this is who I truly am. Before I wasn't anything. I wasn't myself. Who knows.

“Oh, God. How'd you do that to yourself?” Tily frowned and I didn't miss the accusing look she sent Azure. I felt the need to protect her so I smiled and answered.

“Oh, you know. I'm easily distracted. I slammed a door into my arm.” I bit my lip and blushed, averting my eyes away from her. I hoped my lie sounded believable.

“I can tell you're going to be a regular in my room. Huh, Lilith.” She chuckled a bit and walked over to a fridge and opened it. She pulled out a frozen pack and handed it to me. “Sorry to say there's not much we can do. Here's an ice pack. Keep it on your arm for a while and try to freeze it up again if it melts. Come back tomorrow before breakfast so I can have a closer look at it, alright?”

I smiled back at her and nodded. I left the room with Azure leading me out.

“Thanks for taking the heat of me. You didn't have to lie. I totally deserved any detention or scolding the could have given me.”

I smiled and shook my head. “No you don't. It was an accident and you didn't mean to so it's alright.”

Azure sighed and took my arm in hers again. Again, she was gentler this time and smiled. “I so owe you.” I chuckled. “I really do. I could have fractured or broken your bone. You're so darn small. Hell, I could've killed you.”

Her vibrant eyes dulled for a split second and I wondered if I had instead blinked and imagined it. “Well you didn't. I'm very much alive.”

She giggled girlishly and pulled me along. “C'mon. We can go back to our room and compare schedules. After that I can tell my brother which classes he shares with you.” She giggled. It sounded malicious and then I felt the presents of eyes on me again. In fact, they had been there all along. I've already found myself used to them. That's pretty creepy. She shuddered slightly and entered the dorm. I ran up the stairs with azure, back to our room. What was scarier was that I didn't mind that I had a gorgeous, 23 year old-looking boy stalking me.