Samara Shaw
The room went eerily quiet. No one said anything after I yelled and the girl, who used to be right in front of me, had taken a few steps away from me. Her face was stricken in fear but not as much as Ceris' whose eyes had gone a little watery. Shock was evident on Vince's face but he looked less frightened than the rest. Although, they all looked surprised by my sudden outburst, I was the most frightened.
I didn't understand what I said or why I said it. The only languages I knew were English, Spanish, French, Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo and Arabic. The words I said were not any of those neither was it any I'd heard of or understood. They flew out of my mouth and for that second, it felt like I knew exactly what I was saying and the next, it felt like what I said made no sense at all. I could only describe it to be something else making use of my body but that was a ridiculous thought, there was no such thing as that.
However, it seemed what I said made sense to them. If it wasn't, she would've used it as an advantage to make fun of me but instead, it made her frightened. That was the moment I realised Thorne Academy had more effect on me than just following strict rules and severe punishments. Maybe I wasn't thinking much about the fact the people there were not mentally deranged but strange in their look and lifestyle. For goodness sake, the building was a city big, how was it even possible?
If things were normal, it was meant to be under the government's supervision and the public would have known about it. Even if they didn't, having pale green skin or elf ears was practically impossible. I'd met a lot of people and none of them looked that way, these were paranormal creatures and knowing that, I still didn't mind. I didn't even think about it but speaking a language I didn't know or understand? That was even worse, it meant whatever was in the school was beginning to affect me too.
"I'm sorry"
The tension in the room was unbearable so I stood up and took my leave. I broke my promise by leaving Ceris behind but she did not follow me either so I assumed it was her choice to stay. I walked through the passageway with my legs shivering and my heart thumping fast in fear. It took about five minutes before I finally made it out to the dining hall where everything looked and felt as normal as it was before. I had just my head out when I spotted Lucy on the same table she ate breakfast and with no other person I knew, she was the my only option. I knew whatever I would say would get an 'I don't care' reply but regardless, she was the only person I could confide in at that moment.
The walk to her seat was just not frightening because of what had happened but also because of what I thought people would think with the look on my face or with the way I walked like I had seen a ghost. I got lucky and only got a few stares, everyone was probably already used to me and also, the people there were not like the ones I grew up knowing. When I was younger, I used to get a lot of stares from both men and women. Men because they simply adored me and women because they would search for something they found imperfect. None of the people there paid much attention to me or cared about how I looked and that one the one thing that made it better than home.
She was chewing on meat when I pulled out a chair in front of her. Immediately she noticed my presence, she let out a long sigh "What are you doing here?"
"Staying with my roommate and friend, is that a problem?"
"To me, of course. At least you're not here with your friend"
"Her name is Ceris and she's with Vince"
"Vince invited her? That's a surprise"
"It's also a surprise you don't refer to him as Lord Vince"
"He doesn't deserve that much respect from me or any at all"
"I see." With the way it looked, I didn't think anyone would deserve so much respect from Lucy. She didn't look like someone to care about people's feelings or obediently follow the rules. The few hours I had spent knowing her was enough to prove it. "Anyways, he invited both of us and something weird happened so I had to leave. Can I talk to you about it?"
"No"
"Cause you don't care, I get it but this time, I'm going to have to tell you because I have no one to talk to"
"Why can't you just wait for your friend, she looks like someone who'd care"
"She still in there and she's just as shocked as everyone. Besides, I chose to tell you so please hear me out, maybe you'll understand why they all look so surprised"
"Okay, here's a good idea. How about you don't tell me at all?"
"It started when this pale green girl said something bad to Ceris and I got mad because I know she's too kind to deserve anything like that but I got very angry, even more angry than I've ever been_"
"So did you beat her up?"
"No, of course not. Why would I do that?"
"To show her she can't mess with your friends"
"Oh, so you would've done that for me?"
"No"
"Great. Moving on, I said bad things to her too and she got up and then I said something like et ego unum verbum et non ex me canes pascat te and I don't even know what it means"
Lucy didn't say what I expected her to, she didn't say anything at all. She paused her meal and looked up at me, finally showing interest in what I was saying. However, she didn't look shocked like the rest but her response was enough to show what happened was serious. If it wasn't, she wouldn't have paused her means.
"Do you care now?"
"Yes, because this affects me too."
The final bell went off and rang through the hall, causing the noise to increase as everyone stood up to leave. Ignoring our conversation, Lucy stood up too and was about to walk away when I asked "Wait, what do you mean by it affects you?"
"Listen here Cinderella_"
"It's Samara"
"Samara, whatever, you have have to understand this is more important than you think it is and till anything is done about it or when snow hair decides to tell everyone, you shouldn't go around telling people what happened in there. Just do yourself a favor and keep quiet, okay?"
"Only if you tell me what it means"
"Okay, go ahead, stand on the table and tell everyone. In fact, you should yell so everyone in there would hear it too and see what happens after"
She walked away after that sentence, leaving to ask myself why she had suddenly gone so angry in just a few seconds. I never really understood why she was always so cold hearted or why the things she said never got to me in any way. For instance, I could have gotten offended if anyone else said those exact same words to me, but I didn't to her so I assumed it was just because I had gotten used to her.
It was finally the time to serve my punishment and I had not taken a bite from my lunch. My stomach was empty and I didn't have enough energy to pluck out the roses. The thought of it made me feel exhausted, I couldn't imagine what would become of me after hours of walking around under the one o'clock harsh sun. I had no one to walk me around like Ceris did and even though I knew the way to the entrance, I needed her calming words and support.
I stood up and decided to get a bottle of fruit juice, hoping it would give me the energy I needed. There was just a few left when I took one and headed to the double doors leading to the hallway. I twisted the cap and chugged down half the content out of hunger. It tasted less natural then the freshly made orange juice I used to drink at home which had less sugar. It wasn't much of a surprise, my mother used to tell me packaged foods tasted different and that I should only take fresh ones. I also noticed the striking difference in the color, the bottled one looked darker.
I was almost done with the bottle when I spotted Accius standing right in front of the familiar redhead, Lady Esther. He had a handmade basket in his hand and so did the woman in front of him. I didn't realise what was happening till she turned to me and said "You're three minutes late"
"I'm sorry, I_"
"Have it" She pushed the basket into my hand roughly, causing me to take a step back. Anyone would expect she apologized for what she did but she didn't. It was as if she holding it caused her discomfort and as soon as she let it go, she straightened her suit with her palm and adjusted her glasses on the bridge of her nose.
"Make sure you both get back to your dorms before eight o'clock."
She then turned and walked away, her heels clicking on the floor behind her. Accius didn't waste any time before also turning to leave. We got the same punishment and that was relief I would not have to do it all alone. Although, it would be better if we could keep each other's company but he didn't look very friendly and could possibly be worse than Lucy so I kept quiet as we left the building.
I trailed behind him like a lost puppy with no idea where I was going to start but trusted he would lead the way. Our walk to wherever he was going was in complete silence. He did not say anything and if I wasn't seeing him myself, I wouldn't notice his presence. I didn't decide to talk till a few minutes after when curiosity pushed me to the peak.
"Hey"
I got no reply and decided to say it again but louder than before. I thought he didn't hear me at first but when he didn't reply the second time, it was confirmation he didn't want to speak to me. I didn't expect him to but I felt a spark in me when he didn't and that spark was anger.
"It's considered rude and disrespectful to ignore"
That didn't make him change his mind about replying me. He still kept quiet as we walked further away from the building towards the fence. That fueled the rage in me and made me even more angry with his silence. I felt the fire burning inside me till suddenly, everything stopped.
"Amica mea"
It happened again, I said something I didn't understand and for that split second before I snapped back to the reality, it felt like what I said made sense. I didn't understand it, I didn't know the meaning and the more I thought of it, the more insane I felt I was. What did it mean and why did I make the same mistake all over again?
"I'm sorry, I'll just start here"