Truth- Shadow goddess seris(COMPLETE)

Chapter One

I couldn’t believe this building they called a school. Well Academy, or so I’ve been told. This place was a castle. Complete with a cobblestone wall that seemed to wrap the entirety of the Academy. There were even what looked to be guards walking along the upper portions of the wall, where I am assuming there was a walkway. Because, what else would they be walking on? A large grated iron door stood at the entry of the wall, rolling up, up, up, until only the sharpened spikes on the bottom showed. They shut immediately after we entered, much faster than they had risen. This wasn’t an ordinary Academy. This was a damn prison. 

Who was I to judge though, I didn’t have anywhere else to go and Uncle Jack was kind enough to let me stay with him. He was headmaster of the Academy, and had been for over a decade. Mom always told me she wanted me to come here, and started bombarding my dad when I turned ten. Dad always said no though. He didn’t want me to come here. He said he wanted me to be safe, to have a normal life. Whatever that means. 

Eventually the car stopped in front of a large set of double oak doors. “Welcome to Prison.” I mumbled to myself, before releasing a long exasperated sigh. Pulling my hood over my head and stuffing loose ends of my long auburn hair into my hoodie I got out of the car. I went to grab my bags but the driver stopped me, insisting he help me carry them. I didn’t argue.

As I went to follow my driver a strange tingling sensation rose along the back of my neck. My hair stood on end and I just knew someone was watching me. Turning around I didn’t see anyone. Feeling like a moron I did a complete spin, just to make sure I wasn’t missing anything. Finally I looked up, and found the source. Way up at the top of one of the towers was a silhouette. I couldn’t make out gender, features or anything else through the stained glass. But I could see the aura. A beautiful vibrant green with specks of red and blue and white dancing within it. 

Don’t ask me how I can see auras, because I had no idea. There was actually a lot about me that I had no clue where it came from. The aura thing however was harder to determine. Everyone had their own original aura, the color of their soul. But when colors start to mingle within it is when I get confused. Every color that mingles with their original soul color means something. Blue means sad, red is mad, yellow is calm while purple is excited. It was so hard to keep up with everything. 

This aura though, it spoke volumes. Green was his natural aura, beautiful forest green. The little red I saw tells me the person isn’t exactly mad, but was agitated over something. But the blue...There was so much blue. Whoever this person was, was extremely sad. But the white told me they tried to hide it. White was a color that showed the most. White could mean many things. They were tired, or stressed, could even mean they have just given up. So I wasn’t sure. 

Shaking my head I turned and followed the driver into the main entrance. I was amazed at how they mixed modern with….Well I didn’t know what century this castle was from. Stone floors spread throughout as far as I could see. A sitting area not far to my right had a large red carpet in front of a blazing stone fireplace. Couches, chairs and a table sat on top of the rug.

To my left was a grand winding staircase that went all the way up to the top. It sectioned off for each floor, but in general the way upstairs or down was by this one lone staircase. The walls were lined with sconces holding actual torches. The flames cast an eerie light, making shadows bounce off the walls. There was modern lighting as well. Just by the looks of it, it was mostly in the main areas with one here and there down the halls. The whole castle just gave me a prison/ dungeon vibe. And I didn’t like it. Nothing about this place screamed welcome. In fact it screamed “Run while you still have the chance” And I wanted to. I wanted to run as far away from this creepy place as I could. 

Again, nothing about this place was warm or welcoming. The wall with guards, the iron gate, sconces with live torches, tapestries depicting vampires, werewolves, dragons, and other creatures made it feel more like a 16th century haunted house. Even the few students that passed by me started like I was some kind of freak sideshow. I ignored them, but couldn’t help but shiver. This place felt cold….lifeless, even with the life it held within its walls. 

“Wait here Miss. Rose.” The driver said, placing my bags at my feet. “I’ll go get the headmaster.” 

I nodded before turning to take in the statues that lined the walls. They were gorgeous. Grey stone standing taller than me. Each of them smooth, as if they’d just been carved. Each of them were crafted after mythological creatures. Dragons with grand wings stretching towards the sky. Wolves with their heads tilted back as they howled at an unseen moon. 

Then there were the vampires. Breathtakingly beautiful. Flawless in their beauty as if they were carved by the gods themselves. The woman. Tall, lean and perfect all the way around. Even her smile seemed to be beaming even though she was made of stone. The Male vampire was tall with broad shoulders. His chest was bare where he was showing an amazing amount of muscle mass. He had abs for days, and a perfectly muscled chest. 

As I examined the statues I felt the same presence from the tower above me. I knew they were at the upstairs banister watching me. I just ignored whoever it was. They seemed to be getting some weird pleasure from watching me. So I just let them. It wasn’t hurting anything after all. So I busied myself observing the statues. I softly ran my fingertips along the face of the female vampire. How could someone be so flawless? So perfect?

“I know you’re there.” I said flatly, dropping my hand back down to my side. “Can I help you with something?” 

I turned around and I swear my heart stopped. This boy, no this man was more beautiful than words could ever express. He had black hair that hung in waves down to his ears. One eye was partially covered by his hair but they were blue. A deep icy, ocean blue that reminded me of the arctic ocean. He had a flawless ivory complexion, high cheekbones and a solid squared jaw. His lips were plump but not overly so. He was tall, and very well built by the looks of it. He seemed kind of broody though. Shoulders coiled and tense, his jaw was grinding. His eyes stared down at me hard and cold. He looked like he had seen one too many horrors in his short life. Like he carried the weight of the world on his broad shoulders. 

“How?” He asked. His voice is deep, seductive and smooth as silk. 

“Care to elaborate on that?” I arched my brow.

Oh, he didn’t like that. He didn’t like being challenged. I found it amusing to be honest, and I couldn’t help but smirk at the response I got from him, even if it was unintentional.

“How did you know I was there?” he ground out through clenched teeth. 

“Ah.” I chuckled. “Ask me no questions, I’ll tell you no lies.” I responded coolly.   

“I did ask.” He said flatly. 

“Then I’ll lie.” I shrugged. 

He shot towards me quick as a whisper in the wind. He was fast, very fast, but I saw him coming and quickly ducked and spun around moving myself away from his outstretched arms. 

“Don’t touch me.” I warned. My voice deepened. My tone went flat and hard with my warning. 

“What are you?” 

“I am no one to you.” I hissed. 

“You’re not afraid of me. Why?” 

“There is nothing to fear when you have already lost everything and everyone that mattered.” I responded. 

Something in his icy eyes shifted. They softened. And in that brief glance I saw so much. So much pain and anguish that seemed soul deep. I saw some of the weight he was carrying, saw the toll it was having on his mind, body and soul. I now understood the blue and white in his aura. 

I felt my heart break for him. No one should have to feel the way he does. No one should have so much weight and responsibility so young. I would help him if I could, but there was nothing I could do. Hell, I didn’t even know who he was. Not even his name. However it didn’t take long for his guard to come back up. His eyes turned cold again as he nervously raked a hand through his black hair. 

My eyes unintentionally zeroed in on what he was hiding behind his hair. A thin and long white scar ran from his hairline, down over his right eye ending a few inches below his chin. I could tell by looking at it that it was done intentionally and he didn’t fight. The line was too straight, too clean and precise to have been done by accident. Realizing his mistake he moved his hair to cover it back up and narrowed his icy gaze on me. 

I just shook my head. “You shouldn’t hide it, shouldn’t be ashamed of it.” I told him softly. 

“You don’t know anything.” He growled. 

“You’re right. I don’t.” I nodded. “But I do know however that the scar you try so hard to hide is a badge of honor. It is proof you have been through hell and came out the other side. It proves how strong you are.” 

“Stop.” He demanded. 

“Do you hate it that much?” I asked him. He gave me a curt nod in response. “Would you get rid of it if you could?”

“Impossible.” He sneered. Man this guy has an attitude problem. 

“Nothing is impossible.” I said, shaking my head. “Would you get rid of it if you could?” I asked him again, a bit harder this time. 

“In a heartbeat.” 

I nodded. “Very well.” Taking a step towards him I lifted my hand to put it on his face but stopped short. “May I?” I asked, looking into those mesmerizing blue eyes of his. He hesitated before nodding, making me smile softly up at him before I caressed the scarred part of his face in the palm of my hand. 

“You’ll feel a tingling sensation, but I promise it’s normal.” I told him. He suddenly reached up and grabbed my hand, his eyes now boring into mine as if he was looking into my soul. My heart rate picked up and my breath caught in my throat. 

“What are you doing?”  He questioned roughly. 

I just smiled. “Trust me. If only this once.” He studied me for a few minutes before dropping his hand and nodding. I smiled again, glad he found the strength to trust a total stranger. 

I closed my eyes and ran the tips of my fingers feather light down the length of his scar. I focused all my attention and all my will into one thought, to heal this poor broken soul’s scar. To give him some semblance of the life he had before it. I wanted nothing more in this moment but to help this man before me. Finally, I pulled my hand away and opened my eyes. I smiled when I saw smooth skin where his scar had been. There was nothing there to prove he had even had a scar to begin with. 

“There, see.” I said taking a few steps away. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” 

“What did you do?” 

I quickly pulled out my phone and opened the camera app. Pointing the camera at him I snapped a photo. With a small smile, I turned the phone around to show him the picture. His eyes widened as he snatched the phone out of my hands. He ran his fingers down his face where his scar was before looking back up to me. He passed me my phone back, but continued to stare at me. 

“How?” He whispered. All guards now down as emotions blazed within his eyes. 

“Ask me no questions, I’ll tell you no lies.” I repeated the same thing from earlier. “You better go, my uncle is about to round the corner.” I told him jerking my chin in my uncle's direction. He looked the way I indicated and nodded. With a nod of my own, I slowly turned around and started to gather my things. I knew he was gone before I turned back around.