The next morning, I woke up to the sound of screeches in the distance. The sound wasn't exactly loud but it felt like it pierced the deepest parts of my brain. I sat up in bed and covered my ears as a groan escaped my lips.
"What is that?!" I said through clenched teeth. Mildred was sitting at the dressing table, combing her curls without a care in the world.
"The wake-up call," She shrugged, like it was obvious and I was the one being dumb. "Those are the Banshees," she continued. "They're kinda like our alarm systems. You get used to them after a while."
"How are you so calm about it?" I asked, dropping my hands when the screeching stopped at last.
"I've had time to adjust," She pointed her brush at me. "Meanwhile, you are starting off in the middle of the school year. You have a lot to get used to." She returned to brushing her hair.
I dragged myself out of my bed and to my wardrobe. My inability to sleep last night meant that I had managed to arrange my things into the spaces provided for me. It also meant that I had barely gotten any sleep before the make-shift alarms went off. I covered another yawn.
"You might want to speed it up! Headmistress Elowen hates tardiness." Mildred called out from behind me. Grumbling, I pulled out the tacky uniform before I could change my mind. It wouldn't be a good idea to start my new school with the rebellion I had become so reputed for. Mildred told me that unlike regular schools, Balth's uniforms were customized for each student according to their gifts and abilities. I looked at my grey skirt, white blouse and green tie...it was the same as Mildred's and probably every other student in here whose abilities didn't come with extreme physical changes…or spontaneous combustion.
I brushed my teeth and took a short shower. Refreshed and clean, I was ready to talk to Mildred about the events of the night before. I had known her for barely a day, but I could tell she was always in the mood for conversation. I briefly wondered how she survived half of the semester alone.
What was really on my mind was the mystery boy and even though the question burned on the tip of my tongue, I refused to ask it. Instead, I battered the ever-eager Mildred with questions about the school, its students, history and all other boring questions I really couldn't care less about. Mildred answered them all enthusiastically as she sat on her bed fully dressed and ready for school.
I nodded thoughtfully at each of her responses while sitting in front of my small mirror table. I had already worn my uniform and was now doing my minimal makeup. I couldn't think of any more boring questions to ask her and so I was left with the last and most important one.
Dragging a mascara brush against my lashes, I asked as casually as I could, "So, Clyde huh?"
It sounded better in my head.
I couldn't see her from where I was sitting, but I could practically hear Mildred smiling. I guess I didn't do such a great job of hiding my interest.
"What about him?"
I picked up a tube of red lipstick – the kind that made you immediately notice the colour of my hair. Yeah, I didn't feel like being subtle today. "Do you have any idea who he is?"
Mildred didn't answer immediately. Instead, I heard her stand and start pacing around the room. I turned to look at her in confusion and noticed the cheeky smile on her face. She was dragging out her answer to make me desperate. I rolled my eyes and faced the mirror again.
"I don't really know who he is," She giggled. "But I may have heard of him. The Hannigan's are a really powerful family."
Done with my makeup, I loosened my hair from the messy bun atop my head and let it cascade over my shoulders like a sea of lava. I stood up and took one last look at my reflection.
Perfect.
I turned to Mildred with my hands on my hips. "What makes them powerful?" She goes on to explain how they were a family of vampires from a long generation of vampires.
That explained the rich aesthetic.
I was so hooked on her every word that it didn't dawn on me that we were talking about mystical creatures that I never really believed in, and now I was thrown into their reality.
An envelope slid under the door, cutting our conversation short. "Our schedule for the day."
"Is that envelope floating?!"
Mildred ignored my outburst and walked over to pick up the weird paper. It was green with the school's crest in the bottom right corner. Opening it, she handed one letter to me and scanned the other one briefly.
"Ugh. I hate Elements and Cycles!" She folded the letter shut, a bit too aggressively if you ask me, and stomped to where her backpack sat on the floor. Still grumbling, she picked it up and slung it over her shoulder.
I looked down at the letter in my hand, wondering if what I'd see would make me react the same way. It probably wouldn't though seeing as I haven't attended any classes and therefore couldn't determine which ones I hated and which ones I didn't. With that comforting thought in mind, I opened and read the schedule.
Scanning the paper, I realized that these classes were customized for each student based on their abilities and included a few general classes. There was nothing like "Elements and Spells" in mine. I looked up again at Mildred.
"I never did ask what you were."
She stopped grumbling to look at me briefly but there was still a scowl on her face when she answered. She must really hate that class. "I'm fae."
I blinked at her. "Fae? As in you're a fairy?"
She waved a dismissive hand at me. "Yes, yes. The fairfolk. People of the Hills. Elves of light and goodness. All of that."
That was quite possibly the coolest thing I had heard all day and she didn't even seem to think it was all that special. Suddenly overwhelmed with curiosity, I padded over to where she sat and reached a hand out. She instinctively moved away from me.
"What are you doing?"
I shrugged. "I just want to see something." She looked at me like I was crazy but didn't move out my reach again.
Just as she said she was fae, I realized I had never seen her ears. They were always conveniently covered by her perfect dark curls. Now, as my hand gently moved her hair away on both sides, I could see she was telling the truth.
Her ears rose into the faintest taper, graceful and sleek—not exaggerated or comical, but elegant, like the curve of a petal right before it folds. The edges shimmered faintly in the light, as if they caught things most people missed—sunlight, moonlight, truth.
They twitched, just slightly, when my fingers got too close.
"Are you quite finished?" she muttered, her scowl deepening, but her voice didn't carry the same heat. It sounded almost… embarrassed.
"I mean," I breathed, "you have pointy ears."
"Brilliant observation," she deadpanned. "Next you'll discover fire is hot."
But I couldn't stop staring. They didn't make her look alien—they made her look complete. Like she had been born in a world where magic wasn't a myth but a birthright. Like she belonged to forests older than time. It was beautiful.
"How come you never show them?" I asked.
"There aren't so many fair folk here. People either stare too long or ask too many questions," she said quietly, brushing her hair back over them. "You just did both."
I didn't feel sorry - it was totally worth it. Mildred shook her head at me and stood without warning. "We're going to be late." She said as she marched out of the room.
I grabbed my backpack as well and followed after her. We might not have the same classes but she definitely knew the school grounds more than I did and I was not going to get lost on my first day.