As both girls begin to unpack their belongings, Ella scanned her own room. The tall window gave through large amounts of sunlight and outside her window, she could see the vast gardens and trees. The bed was much bigger than her old bed back with her mother and made her feel like royalty. [Definitely king-sized!]. The desk and chair were made of sturdy brown wood, and fortunately, the Academy was kind enough to give each of them their own mirror.
[The room seems a little empty, so I want to decorate it heaps with cute pictures!].
Unpacking the last of her clothes, she placed a frame of her and her mother on the bedside table. Opening her 'secret' journal, Ella began to write down the events of the day.
"It seems that Merula is a quiet and isolated character. She seems almost like a tsundere but not? Her family's upbringing must have contributed to the destruction of her character. She appears to not have friends from the way she's acting, and she gets flushed from praises. For now, she seems harmless so I'll do my best to prevent her from a bad ending.
However, I don't recall Ella and Merula being roommates? Maybe it wasn't significant enough...But oh well. I'll stick with Merula and be her friend. But that'll mean I might see the other characters..."
Ella sighed. [This is much tougher than I thought].
"At least my mother left some cookies. I'll share them with Merula and hopefully, I can get some questions out of her."
Knocking on Merula's door, she entered. Looking around Merula's room, it was clean and tidy with only a couple of pens and notebooks.
"Hey Merula, do you want some cookies? I bought them from a cafe place down in the city."
"Hmm...okay." Merula hesitantly took a bite of the cookie.
"They're not poisoned trust me. Although they are a bit too sweet for my liking." Ella said as she took a handful of cookies in her mouth and sat on Merula's bed.
"We haf an howa left, and I waz finking we shoud decowate owa room so it's more cozshi!" Ella said, mouth filled with the sweet dessert.
Translation: We have an hour left, and I was thinking we should decorate our room so it's more cozy!
Merula laughed.
"Sorry, heehee. We should decorate our room and make it more home-y! It's a bit bland, what do you think, Merula?"
"It does seem a bit empty right now...what do you suggest?"
"Well, maybe some table cloths for the kitchen and dining table to make it more pretty! I think to avoid the room getting dirty we should buy a shoe rack as well and some indoor slippers. I'd love to hang some art prints too!"
"Wow...that sounds amazing. I wonder if there's a store that would sell these things." Merula asked, grabbing another cookie.
"I'm sure there would be since the Academy is quite large. There must be some sort of general store...But for the meantime, let's write down all the things we need!"
Quickly grabbing a pen and paper, the two girls began to sketch and write down designs for their room. As they vividly engaged in conversation, Ella noticed that Merula although somewhat blunt, was harmless and had excellent art skills. [It seems that Merula is just putting on a front when she's in public. Her true personality is quite cautious and timid like a bunny...a cute black bunny!].
"So Merula...do you have any siblings?"
"No. It's just me and my father."
"Oh hey! That's kinda like me. It's just my mother and me. But I'm sorry if I bought back bad memories." Ella said.
"No, it's fine. My mother passed from sickness when I was very young, so I don't have vivid memories of her."
"I'm sorry. My father died when I was young too. I don't remember what he looks like at all, just from photographs." Now that Ella thought about it since she began living in this new world, she knew very little of her father except through her mother.
"Really? I'm sorry for your loss too. You said you're not from the Capitol, so how is life in the countryside?" Merula asked curiously.
Ella happily began to tell Merula about her (new) life in the countryside with her mother. Compared to the Capitol it was quiet but made up with the kindness of the community.
"It sounds fulfilling to be at home with your mother gardening and growing crops, Ella. I'm envious."
"How about yourself, Merula? What is your life in the Capitol like? It must be really busy especially with so many people!"
"Busy is an understatement. As an heir of a noble house...there is a lot to learn, so I started lessons early as a child."
"What kind of lessons? Like etiquette? Don't tell me you had to attend all those fancy balls and tea parties." Ella laughed.
"Yes."
Ella choked. [Goddamit, they really had her do all this shit!? And for what?].
"You poor, poor child. I am so sorry you had to suffer through years of that." Ella shook her head before giving Merula a comforting hug.
"It was okay, although tedious work."
"Oh gosh, don't tell me you're like engaged or something," Merula asked. [I'm sorry Merula. I need to fake me not knowing your entire life story].
"I'm engaged to the Crown Prince, Blaize. Although most people in high society know of it. But... how did you know? "
"Uhhh...I just guessed? I didn't realise your life is just like those fantasy novels in the library." Ella chuckled, somewhat nervously.
"I suppose my life is just like those fairytales and stories." Merula looked down, visibly melancholy.
"Umm...well is your fiance nice at least?"
"Oh, Prince Blaize? He's...very sweet." Merula's cheeks turned a light pink.
"Well, that's good to hear. At least someone's on your side." Ella gave a fake smile.
[No that is not good to hear! Why is he kind? Hell, he's a two-timing bastard! I won't let him get away with stringing Merula].
"Well, we're at the Academy now, so we're gonna make the best out of it! Merula, forget about your family and all those strict rules, okay. We are gonna have the best time learning and exploring this place. Plus, I can't wait for all those delicious foods~" Ella's eyes glistened, mouth drooling at the thought of a massive buffet.
Merula let out a merry laugh.
"You're such a foodie! I've never met someone like you! You're like...a piggy."
"Hey!" Ella said in disbelief.
"...Oh wait, you're right. Wait but if I'm a piggy, you're a bunny!"
"Bunny? Why a rabbit?" Merula asked, curiously.
"Because you're small and cute like a bunny."
"We should decorate our dorm with pigs and bunnies then. What do you think, Ella?" Merula chuckled.
"I think that's a marvellous idea."
-
"Ella, it's almost lunchtime. I think we should head out."
"Damn, it went that quick?! Okay sure. Let me get ready."
Popping on her jacket and shoes, both girls left their new dorm room.
"Umm, Merula, I'm meeting a friend for lunch, do you wanna join us?" Ella asked, hopeful for a 'yes'.
"I'd love to, but I'll be eating with my fiance. Maybe tomorrow? I can eat with you then since he'll be busy."
"Ohhh...that's okay. Tomorrow then." Ella pouted, mimicking fake tears.
Merula laughed, poking her cheeks as both girls received shocked looks from other students. Waving Merula off, Ella felt a presence behind her.
"Hey~"
Ella jumped, giving out a small shriek.
"For goodness sake! Could you not?" She turned around her, giving a hard punch to Wulff's arm. (To Wulff, it felt like a small kid hitting him).
"You're going to scare me to death." Ella let out a huff, before taking a couple of deep breaths. [Does this kid not know he's gonna kill me one day? My old heart can't take this].
"I'm sorry, but you were too cute, how could I not? Plus your little squeal was quite adorable." Wulff let out a low chuckle, before playing with the strands of her blonde hair.
"Hey! You're gonna mess up my hair. Anyways, do you know where the dining hall is? I'm horrible at maps." Ella swatted Wulff's hand away from her hair before giving up.
"Hmmm...just follow me."
--
Inside the dining hall, Ella felt like she entered a mash-up between Hogwarts and medieval setting. The room was wide with polished floors and quaint tables filled with perfectly folded napkins and shiny silverware. At the side of the hall was the famed buffet, lined with all sorts of delicious foods, from seafood platters to freshly baked bread, all kinds of wonderful desserts and finger food.
"I must be in heaven. I think I'm gonna faint, someone hold me." Ella said, imagining herself in paradise.
"Steady now, you haven't even tried the food. It's said to be the best in all of Lumiere." Wulff held her shoulders.
"Really?! Then we have to try all of them!"
And so, Ella caved to her 'piggy' desires, dragging poor Wulff on her food tour of Leon Academy's famed buffet.