A thundering headache awaited Leon alongside the sluggish reach of the early morning sun. The pain was such that she only realized that the white, chilling walls of the facility, along with its gifts of cool and callous indifference, belonged not to her after the rings of her dutiful alarm had started for the third time.
"It was just a dream."
She sighed, massaging her temples as the pain receded. Leon thought she might still be hearing someone's… strange laughter, but she waved it away. Grudgingly pulling herself from the snug embrace of supple bedding, she soon got ready for school with the haste of a model student and the enthusiasm of a rock.
Marching downstairs to the ire of the staircase and amusement of Viol, her family's butler, Leon arrived at a full breakfast with time to spare. Though her new school maintained a generally neutral clothing stance, on days like today a uniform was required to "uphold school spirit". Even then the only difficulty to the outfit was its confounded accessory.
The uniform consisted of a three piece set of clothing: one navy studded shirt, a matching pair of inky shorts and shoes, a loosely fitted saffron blazer that was much closer to a sweater than a suit, and a small silver cloth with coral threaded edges that, before being pinned to its shirt, had to be knotted into the school's trademark pattern. Sure, it looked similar to a rose, but the mind-numbing knot was much more intricate and demanding upon closer notice. How many times had she attempted it over the holidays? Leon found it downright ridiculous.
"—That's it for the weather segment. Up next we have a special guest to announce—"
The meal was over far too quickly but, as if oblivious to her sulking, the television's anchors continued to speak pleasantly.
"Here you are, Young Miss. As it's the first day, I've prepared additional snacks."
Preoccupied with fiddling with her new least favourite accessory, Leon nodded along out of habit.
Viol silently waited with Leon's schoolbag hanging neatly from their hand. Patience, befitting one who'd worked with the Rivers for half a century, was etched on their face in the form of a small smile. With a dejected scowl Leon eventually gave up, collecting her bag, as Viol diligently detangled the cloth that had nearly become the Eigth World Wonder.
Having scrutinized the rest of their young miss' appearance like a designer performing final checks on a treasured piece, they opened the door and gently ushered Leon through. Daria, today's driver, had arrived just a few minutes earlier.
Looking back, Leon caught a glimpse of Viol playfully acting as though she was being sent off to war. A hanker-chief fluttering back and forth only added to their tearful performance and, though it didn't move its target audience, it had enough effect on the others. Leon was particularly certain she'd heard Daria sniffle.
Though she rolled her eyes at the over-exaggerated scene, after settling into the luxurious car she couldn't help but smile. She felt much more at ease now, almost looking forward to the day as familiar scenery began to rumble past.
It wasn't long until her estate's vibrant and particular foliage fell away to long swaths of road and sea, with feather-like clouds tumbling along. Though the highway they sped onto was more popular than usual, the sun sparkling off of metal hoods in a way that made the belt look like the Milky Way, there was little traffic. She hummed, rolling the backseat window down to release her tensions to the wind. It scuttled and pranced over her window, a hint of salt in its maws as it accompanied her. This certainly won't be so bad, she decided.
Soon, a few turns had taken them off the highway and back onto dry land, where Leon waved goodbye to her sea-swept friend. The road from this point was bustling with inactivity, especially at its checkpoints. Although she was not close to being late, as there was still an hour before the assembly, Leon idly wondered if they would have had better luck going by air. Thankfully the lull didn't last long with their turn passing by uneventfully. With time silver gates that seemed to reach into heaven came into view before towering over her as the car rumbled into the space underneath them. Leon briefly wondered how far down the gates extended, as the same silver pillars she'd seen above were poised firmly like guards across what she could see of the vast underground expanse.
Leon stepped down with restrained awe and hurriedly shooed Daria off before she could attempt act two of today's teary farewells. With a final light wave she turned away to find a door in the distance that was unremarkable, save for its sleek silver front. As she walked closer to it she nodded to others who were wearing similar uniforms, some with ribboned wide hats or long fishnet gloves, roughly tied bandages, or even the occasional hooded cloak. Leon soon looked away from them as she found that the door was less of a door and closer to a standing pond, with a glossy surface that rippled and stilled with every passing figure. As it came to her turn, she unclenched her fists and walked boldly through.
A new year had started. She couldn't wait.