Circle of the Moon

Sapphire

I’m late! I’m late! I was running up the hill to my new school. Why does this hill have to exist?! I kept running, just about to lose my breath, but at last I saw the roof of the building.
Come on!! I ran to the entrance of the school. The teacher was closing the gates.

“Wait!” I screamed. When he saw me, he stopped and waited until I got there. When I went through the gate I fell on my back, breathless.

“Are you ok?” the young-looking teacher asked me. “Let me help you”, he said, taking me by my hand and helping me getting to my feet.

“Thank you”, I smiled. “Do you know where the inauguration ceremony is?” I asked, trying to get the dust out of my skirt.

“Yes, it is crossing this yard”, he replied. “The large building over there”, he smiled kindly.
“Run, because it is about to begin”

I smiled and began running in the direction he had pointed. The only difficult thing about this is keeping my secret safe.

Elyon

I was walking down the aisles with a slow, calm pace, looking at the details in my surroundings and smiling with discreet malevolence. I was planning on skipping a couple of classes that day and I was really looking forward to it. In the end of the aisle, in front of the 5ºC classroom, my backpack was waiting for me, resembling a forsaken anchor. The daylight entered through a crimson colored window. I tried to stay away from it as I took out my sunglasses from the frontal pocket of my jacket and I solemnly put them on.

“Miss Elyon, what do you think this is? A beach?” I heard a voice speak behind me. I turned around in a quick motion and my eyes met those of some professor. “You are always wandering with those horrible glasses. You look like a mosquito. Aren’t you going to assist
to the ceremony?”

“Yes, I just w-went to the bathroom…”, I stammered.

He gave me a stern look and, before going away, he pointed out:

“Nice way to start the year, young lady”

I heard his footsteps resonate in the empty halls and I wished for his death.

Zoe

I was sitting on a bench located in front of the building where the ceremony of inauguration would be. I was enjoying the sun and the soft wind that blew across the yard once in a while. I was watching the students running towards their classrooms but I kept motionless because time wasn’t a problem for me, it could be easily fixed. I saw a girl entering the building with a frustrated expression in her face, and the mere sight of her provoked my laughter. I looked up at the sky and I thought that this year would be really interesting and somewhat anguishing at the same time. The problem wasn’t making friends, but rather controlling myself, controlling my strength, because that was something that no one should know.

Sapphire

I reached the building where the ceremony would be held. All the students were sitting down next to their friends. I didn’t have any, so I just stared at the crowd. There were groups of boys and groups of girls exclusively. I could also recognize a little bit of the personality of each one of them.

There were the ones that thought they were queens of the school, looking in the direction of a very handsome guy. They were probably members of his fan club.

There were also the noisy boys of the football team. I laughed when I saw the chaos they were making in one side of the conference room.

I gazed towards the entrance and I saw a dark looking girl, dressing the same uniform as all the others, but she had personalized it adding a chain in the right side of her skirt and loosening the tie, leaving open the first two buttons of her blouse.

She was also wearing a black wristband in her right arm, some leather bracelets with metal ornaments in the other one, and sunglasses.

Why is she wearing those glasses if we are inside of the room?

She had a weird appearance but she gained my attention. For some reason, I felt energy emanating from that girl. When she was deep inside of the room she took off her glasses and put them in the frontal pocket of her jacket. Now I could see that her eyes were of a bizarre shade between scarlet and deep purple. She sat down in a dark corner of the room. A chill ran up my spine. I decided that it would be better to search for a place among the crowd.

I found a seat in one of the edges of the room and I sat there. I breathed in deeply, slowly letting out the air. Everything will be fine. I opened my eyes and found out that a guy had sitted next to me. When he felt my gaze he turned his head to me, and I felt how the heat went to my cheeks. Damn! You weren’t supposed to be noticed, you fool!, I told myself.

“Hi”, he said. When I saw his smile I couldn’t help smiling too; it was so pretty. “You are new in here, aren’t you?” he guessed.

“Ehm” I stammered. Speak! “Yes, I just moved here”. Finally my voice replied.

“That’s what I thought”, he said. “I hadn’t seen you before. My name is Matias”, he introduced himself. “And you are…?”

“Sapphire”, I told him my real name without even thinking about it. I was so thrilled about having a new friend that I completely forgot introducing myself with the alias they had given me. Damn!

“Sapphire?” he asked with a frown. “That is an unusual name”, he said, “but I like it”, he added quickly when he saw the concern in my face.

The smile returned to me. “Thank you”

In that moment a loud noise was heard from the front of the room. I saw a fat, little man. I supposed he was the director.

“Youngsters”, he cleared his throat in direction to the microphone, “welcome to the Aglaia High School”

The director commenced his speech, welcoming us. Everyone remained quiet.
Well, I think I have made at least one friend. It wasn’t supposed to happen, but at least I won’t be alone anymore.

I changed my position to a more comfortable one in my chair and I heard the director’s speech.

Elyon

I stayed there for a while, watching from behind the crimson window the students walking across the yard towards the ceremony. This was a both soporific and somewhat elegant event which I had been assisting to since the first day of the first year of school.

I crossed my arms and softly leaned against the window sill.

“Miss Ellie”, another voice said.

I let out a grunt. Why would someone constantly interrupt my thoughts? I turned around and my eyes met the invisible stare of Christopher. He exhibited his white teeth in a wide, evil smile and made the sound of a serpent.

“Gentleman!” I exclaimed with surprise, trying to find his eyes behind the dark lenses of his glasses. I didn’t found them.

He mocked me in silence and put his arm in the wall just over my head. I saw how his long, golden, and curly hair getting so close to my face that it almost touched me. My heart raced. He took my hands with the one he had free and squeezed them with an amazing strength, trying to make me realize his power. Then he softly caressed them and let go.

“Will you come with me to the ceremony?”

“Wouldn’t you rather do something else?” I replied, letting him know how dumb I can be.
Now he rested his forehead against mine and smiled.

“Yes”, he replied. “I will do something else. I will go for a chocolate”. He walked away in a very quick motion. Before I knew, he was standing four feet away from me with his tidy uniform and his black trench coat completely static as if they were the clothes of a marble statue. “If God wants, we will meet again”

“God?! You were the one that firmly supported Epicurus’s theories stating his inexistence!”

“So WHAT? Today, believing would be fun, little miss”, he laughed sarcastically and disappeared as he walked towards the cafeteria.

It was until then than I regained my breath. He fascinated me. I shook my head and walked away. I wasn’t in the mood for staying there another while and wait for the next bizarre event
to occur.

I went outside, to the yard, and I became one with the stream of students. We entered into the room and then the stream disintegrated in individuals that began searching for their friends. The popular girls were, as always, conglomerating in a single mass and exchanging sweet looks with the football team boys. The new guys were motionless, scrutinizing their surroundings as if they were expecting a predator to come for them. There was a girl that attracted my attention. She was thin and short, and in the gloom a bluish aura emanated from her chest. I took off my glasses to distinguish the details of that silhouette. What shined was a nacre shell that hung from a silver necklace decorated with tiny sapphires. In her dark hair the same shade of blue was repeated in the elastic band that held it in a bun, decorated with ribbons that reminded of seaweed. She was wearing her uniform in an orthodox way, but that would change in a future. Then I saw that she was looking at me too and our eyes met. Her eyes were a clear aquamarine. It was undeniable the power they transmitted.
I decided not to think about that and walked towards my favorite corner. I sat down and continued observing in search of a golden hair. Chris hadn’t entered, indeed.

Zoe

I began to get bored and I had a serious thought on if I was going to enter the ceremony or not, this was going to be the eleventh time I attended the ceremony and I wasn’t really in the mood to listen the boring voice of the director, but I was really curious on who were the new students. I walked quickly towards the building and suddenly I crashed into someone, making me fall flat on my back. I rubbed my head because the impact was really strong, and when I opened my eyes I saw that the person was Kiyoshi, he quickly helped me up, and with his deep voice said:

“Are you alright?”

“Um…” I was wordless when I saw his face.

“You hit your head very hard, right?” he said in a worried tone.

“No, don’t worry”, I said, nervous. “It wasn’t too serious”

“Oh, that’s good. So… where were you going to?”

“I was going to the ceremony but I am not really sure of entering or not”

“I hope you do come in so that we can see the new ones”, he said, smiling.

“Yes… I think I will”, I felt how my blood went up to my face. Damn, don’t do this to me!, I thought as I watched Kiyoshi.

“Are you sure you are ok?”

“Yes… don’t worry”

“Well, I’ll see you in ten minutes”, he said as he walked towards the ceremony.
When he left I felt a strong pressure in my chest and I blushed, becoming as red as a tomato. You aren’t allowed to fall in love with a guy, it is entirely forbidden, I thought as I grabbed my face, but it was inevitable.

I walked towards the building completely immerse in my thoughts. When I entered I saw all the guys with their respective groups but there were two girls that gained my attention. One of them was dark, with a strange hue of eye color, and the other one seemed to be taken out of the sea. They both had a very weird presence and were alone. Something in them was not normal. I found a seat in the middle of the room and I went to it. The director started speaking but my mind was in another place, thinking only about those strange girls.

Sapphire

When the ceremony ended, everyone began going out and walking towards a big bulletin board in which the classroom lists were already pasted.

When Matias and I arrived, all the students were conglomerated in front of the board, which made it impossible for me to see anything. I was too short, and I couldn’t see even if I got in the tip of my toes.

Matias laughed, standing by my side. “Do you want me to check it out for you?” he offered.

“Yes, thank you”, I smiled. He just had to stretch a little bit his neck in order to see the lists.

“You are in 5ºC”, he said, “and I am in 5ºA”

My smile disappeared. Great, now I’m alone again. “Aren’t we together?” I asked in a concerned voice.

“Nope”, he replied, “but don’t worry, at recess I can go to your classroom to visit you.” He winked at me and exposed his teeth in a mischievous smile. What a smile! I laughed at his gesture. “Shall I accompany you to your classroom?”

“Yes”, I happily replied. I placed my backpack on my shoulder and followed him.

Elyon

Gods are merciful. That’s why the ceremony ended relatively soon. I left my seat with a tiny jump and saw the new girl passing close by accompanied by good old Matias. He was a nice boy, and I liked him even though we almost never spoke. I blissfully smiled to myself and went outside towards the board where the lists of the classrooms were pasted. I fortunately managed to scurry between the people there and I emerged just in front of the lists of the fifth grade. My eyes scanned them until I saw my name:

Watkins, Elyon, 5ºC

Satisfied and indifferent, I stepped backwards as some people did the opposite to occupy my privileged position. Suddenly, a hand grabbed me by the head. It was Christopher.
We exchanged smiles. Mine was nervous, his was arrogant. Now that he wasn’t wearing his glasses, his golden eyes frantically shone with a cold, evil intelligence.

“See you in Hell”, he whispered before softly pushing me aside.

I lost my balance and almost fell in front of Zoe, a classmate. She tilted her head, staring perplexed at me.

“Hi!” I said with a big smile and waving with my hand. I felt my face glowing as bright as a red LED.

“Hello…”, she replied. “Are you fine?” She stared at me as if I was the creepiest thing she had ever seen.

“Yeah, thanks!” I nervously ran my fingers through my hair, first brushing it backwards and then pushing it all to the front in order to cover my face. Chris, you little motherfucker…

The calm energy that was flowing from Zoe’s body made me dizzy. I felt a strong desire of getting the hell out of there. She frightened me, just a little, but at the same time I liked her personality.

“Well, I guess I’ll be seeing you around…”, I muttered and quickly walked away.

Zoe

I stared at her with confusion. Is she all right? She was a weird girl and her presence was intriguing. Despite of that and the fact that I didn’t know her well, I liked Elyon. I turned around to see the classroom lists and I found out that I was in 5ºC. I kept scanning the list and saw that Elyon was also in my classroom. Then I turned my head to see if I found Kiyoshi, but I didn’t. With great disappointment I walked to my new classroom.

When I arrived, I saw all the students chatting with their respective friends. All but one. The exception was the girl that seemed to be taken out of the sea, so I went near her to see who she was because she had a different presence.

“Hi”, I said, smiling.

“Hi”, she replied, puzzled.

“What’s your name?”

“Sa… Kim” There was nervousness in her voice.

“Nice to meet you, Kim. My name’s Zoe”

“Nice to meet you”

“I love your necklace and your ribbons, they seem as if they were taken out of the sea”, I said happily.

“Of the sea?! Of course not! Why would they be taken out of the sea?” she laughed with nervousness.

“You are very funny, Kim”, I said, laughing too. “May I sit next to you?”

“Yes, of course”, she finally replied with a smile.

I’ve got to find out what this strange aura is about. The bell rang and everyone sat down and, out of nowhere, Elyon was suddenly sitting behind me.

“Elyon, you scared me! When did you get in here?” I asked with curiosity.

“I just came in”, she snapped and put her sunglasses on.

Sapphire

“We’ve arrived”, Matias said, stopping in front of a door. The wall beside it read 5ºC.

I stared at it, trying to swallow the nervousness I felt. “So this is it, huh?” I sighed. “Thanks for your company, Mat”, I smiled. “Does it bother you if I call you that?

“No, it’s fine”, he said. “Now I will go to my classroom”

I nodded. “Bye”

“I’ll see you at recess” I watched him walking away, anxiously waiting for the recess to come.

I spun around and stared at the door. I took a deep breath and opened it. There were already some students inside, but it seemed as if some were still missing.

Once again, I looked at the guys and girls that were there; you could tell the differences between each group. The typical, haughty preppie girls were flirting with the boys that were members of some sport team. Around the most handsome guy in the classroom a few other girls gathered. The geeks were in a corner at the front, joyfully reading a videogame magazine. The other group was formed by the noisy boys that were, just as it was expected,
making a huge havoc everywhere they could get to.

I had no idea of what to do or where to go; I was completely alone. I saw an empty desk and I went towards it, placing my backpack on it when I arrived.

I sat and stared out of the window, but then I felt a strange presence next to me. I turned my head around to see who it was.

“Hi”, a smiling girl said. Her appearance was different, fun.

“Hi”, I said, puzzled.

“What’s your name?” she asked as curiosity gleamed in her eyes.

“Sa… Kim”, I replied with nervousness, remembering in the last second to introduce myself using my alias.

“Nice to meet you, Kim. My name’s Zoe”

“Nice to meet you”

“I love your necklace and your ribbons, they seem as if they were taken out of the sea”, she said with a huge grin.

Shit! “Of the sea?! Of course not! Why would they be taken out of the sea?” I nervously laughed and gazed at a different direction. I knew I shouldn’t have brought them with me!

“You are very funny, Kim”, she laughed. “May I sit next to you?”

“Yes, of course”, I calmed down a little bit.
In that moment the bell rang and everyone sat down. I started to feel that bizarre chill in my spine again.

“Elyon, you scared me!” I heard Zoe saying. “When did you get in here?” I turned around to see who she was talking to. It was the dark girl that I had seen earlier at the conference.

“I just came in”, she snapped as she put her sunglasses on once again. These girls have something that is intriguing. I’m going to find out what it’s about.

A teacher came into the classroom. He was tall, slender, with an incipient baldness in the top of his head.

“Good morning, kids”, he said with a little high voice. “I’m Mr. Morris, your literature teacher” he introduced himself. “I’m going to ask you to tell me your name and a hobby of yours”, he said. “Does someone want to start?”

“Me”, an annoying squeaky voice came from de back of the classroom. I turned around and saw one of the popular girls get up from her seat with a jump. She was wearing the uniform blouse open to the forth button and the skirt suspiciously shorter. “My name is Niki and I love being a cheerleader!” she squealed.

I saw Zoe roll her eyes, and I heard a guttural growl come from Elyon’s throat. Wow.

When Niki sat down, a tall and muscular boy stood up. “I’m John, as you already know”, he laughed smugly. It was my turn to roll my eyes. “I like to play football”, he finished.

It went on like that for a while; boys and girls introducing their selves. I discovered that there also were new kids in my class.

It was my turn and I stood slowly from my chair. I licked my lips and began. “Uh… My name is Kim”, I said with a too smooth voice. “And I love swimming”. I finished and sat quickly, with my cheeks blushed from the embarrassment.

Elyon

“Miss Watkins, it’s your turn”, Morris said without looking directly at me.

I grunted. I stood up, imagining for a moment that suddenly all the attention was completely on me. I hated and loved that feeling. It was just endurable when I was on a stage, acting in front of a public that was there to see me. But, in this case… I was glad that no one could see my eyes.

“Most of you already know me. I’m Elyon”, I said, “and I… I like… playing cello.”

I sank into my seat with a crash and I hid, with my arm, the prying eyes.

“Thank you, Elyon”, Morris said.

I heard some giggles from where the popular people sat.

“She’s so weird”, said one of them as if I couldn’t hear them.

“I know. I mean, she’s such a loner”, replied another one.

“She creeps me out”, a third one said.

I was already used to this kind of comments. It had always been that way and it would never change. This time, however, I heard something new:

“Do you know who Christopher is?” Niki asked one of her friends. Her voice got even squeakier as she said, “He is a guy from the sixth grade. He is, like, SO good looking.”

“I know!” an uninvited choir of identical girls replied.

“But he’s another super freak”, Niki continued.

Her friend nodded,

“He is one of Elyon’s friends.”

“More than friends, they say.”

“Fucking bitch! How does she dare? I mean, I’m sure he’d rather be my boyfriend. I’m like, so a lot prettier.”

“Of course you are!”

I couldn’t stand it any longer. I buried my face in one of my hands and I plugged an earphone into my ear. Why?, I wondered as I pushed the play button in my iPod. Why are they always judging me? Their entire world was reduced to physical appearance.

I hated them. Their only function in society was making everyone’s existence a little more
complicated.

Professor Morris began his lesson. It was about the Bible, the most read book in the world. However, no one there knew anything about it at all.

Frustrated, I took a deep breath and watched the beautiful colors of the ornaments in Kim’s hair.

Zoe

After a while, Morris asked me to introduce myself and with a great deal of shame I got up from my seat.

“My name is Zoe and I like singing”, I nervously said.

I heard the murmurs of the people when they heard my words. When I sat down I managed to hear the preppies saying that it was really strange that I sang, but I didn’t care since no one of them had heard me doing so.

The class went by without any other eventualities but Elyon’s aura grew murkier by the minute. In the other hand, the energy that Kim emanated became lighter as if her soul had been freed from a concern. I wasn’t able to focus in class since my thoughts kept wandering off to Kim and Elyon. I already knew Elyon but this was the first time I felt the darkness of her soul, and Kim was an entire mystery. She was the first new girl anyone had ever seen.

The bell rang and all the students ran off like animals. Kim, Elyon and I were the only exception.

“Great! It’s over!” I cheerfully said. “Kim, Elyon, what do you think about having lunch the
three of us?”

“Really?” Elyon was bewildered.

“Yeah, that way we’ll break the ice and get to know each other better”, I explained with a smile.

“Whatever”, Elyon snapped.

“If you want, you can bring Christopher with you”, I mockingly said.

“Shut up!” She was a little angry. She put on her sweater.

“I’m sorry, but…” Kim said with a bit of shame, “but… Matias asked me to have lunch with him.”

“Matias?” I asked with curiosity. “We can invite him too.”

“Invite him?!” Kim was nervous. “No, that’d be embarrassing!”

“Don’t worry, I kind of get along with Matias. I can invite him”, I said, smiling.
Kim’s face became red and she ran to the bathroom.

There were already three hours left before recess and the next one would be Mathematics. The professor was a middle aged man, tall and kind of distracted. That was the cause for the class to be easier to undertake.

As the hours went by my plans on finding out who Elyon and Kim really were vanished until I was thinking about something else.

I didn’t felt comfortable with the idea of having to hide what I really was, but I would have died if I had stayed at home. Controlling me and preventing people to find out about my ability would be a real challenge, but even though I saw it that way, I wasn’t the only one keeping a secret.