CHAPTER TWO
859 Words
CHAPTER TWO
A Place That Doesn't Welcome You
Morning arrived quietly.
No birds sang.
No sunlight slipped through the windows.
Instead, a pale silver glow filtered through the thick fog that surrounded Ebon Hollow Academy, making it impossible to tell where the sky ended and the mountains began.
Luna woke up with a start.
For several seconds, she couldn't remember where she was.
Then she saw the towering canopy above her bed.
Dark oak beams.
Heavy crimson curtains.
A fireplace that had gone cold sometime during the night.
It wasn't her bedroom.
It wasn't even close.
Her suitcase sat neatly beside the wardrobe, exactly where she had left it.
Except...
She hadn't unpacked it.
Now every piece of clothing had been folded and arranged inside the wardrobe with impossible precision.
Even the silver hair tie she always kept in the front pocket of her bag rested neatly on the bedside table.
Luna frowned.
"I definitely didn't do that."
A soft knock interrupted her thoughts.
Three knocks.
Evenly spaced.
Before she could answer, the door opened.
A girl about her age stepped inside carrying a tray with tea and breakfast.
She wore the academy's black uniform, though hers was decorated with a silver badge shaped like a raven.
"You must be the new arrival."
Her smile was polite.
Practiced.
"My name is Mira."
Luna smiled back, relieved to finally meet someone her own age.
"I'm Luna."
"I know."
The answer came naturally.
Too naturally.
Mira placed the tray on the table.
"Classes begin in an hour."
She turned to leave.
"Wait."
Mira stopped.
Luna hesitated.
There were so many questions.
Finally, she asked the simplest one.
"... Why does everyone already know who I am?"
For the first time...
Mira's smile faltered.
"You'll learn."
She left before Luna could ask another question.
The academy looked entirely different in daylight.
Less frightening.
More beautiful.
Ancient ivy climbed the stone walls.
Students crossed the courtyards with books tucked beneath their arms.
Some sat beneath enormous willow trees reading.
Others hurried toward distant towers as bells echoed across the grounds.
If Luna hadn't experienced it the previous night...
She might have believed this was an ordinary boarding school.
Almost.
As she walked through the central courtyard, conversations floated around her.
"... The astronomy exam is tomorrow."
"... Meet me after fencing practice."
"... Professor Aldren failed half the class again."
Normal conversations.
Normal students.
She finally relaxed.
Maybe she had imagined everything.
Then she noticed something strange.
Every conversation stopped...
Exactly three steps before she reached the group.
Students lowered their voices.
Some walked away.
Others pretended to be busy.
No one looked directly at her.
Not once.
The silence followed her across the courtyard like an invisible shadow.
By noon, Luna had become familiar with one thing.
People were avoiding her.
Not cruelly.
Not openly.
They simply...
Kept their distance.
She sighed and sat alone beneath the branches of an enormous willow tree overlooking a quiet lake.
Maybe coming here had been a mistake.
She reached into her pocket and unfolded the invitation one last time.
The elegant handwriting hadn't changed.
Your future begins where the ordinary ends.
Luna laughed bitterly.
"So far, my future seems to involve being ignored."
"You chose the worst tree on campus."
The voice startled her.
She looked up.
A boy stood a few steps away, balancing three books beneath one arm.
His uniform was slightly untidy, and a pair of round glasses rested crookedly on his nose.
Unlike everyone else...
He didn't look afraid of speaking to her.
"I'm sorry?"
He nodded toward the lake.
"That tree."
He smiled awkwardly.
"Nobody sits here."
Luna glanced around.
"...Why?"
He looked at the lake.
"My grandmother used to say the willow remembers everyone who's ever cried beneath it."
He laughed.
"I know. Sounds ridiculous."
"It kind of does."
"I'm Rowan."
He offered his hand.
"Luna."
Instead of shaking it...
Rowan froze.
His smile disappeared.
"You..."
His eyes widened slightly.
"... You're Luna?"
She slowly lowered her hand.
"... Is something wrong?"
Rowan looked around the courtyard.
Almost as if he were making sure no one could hear.
Then he leaned closer.
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"Listen carefully."
The warmth vanished from his face.
"If anyone asks..."
"We've never met."
Before Luna could respond...
A bell rang.
Students immediately stopped what they were doing.
Books closed.
Conversations ended.
Hundreds of heads turned toward the tallest tower in the academy.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
Rowan's face had gone pale.
Very quietly, he whispered,
"...He's back."
Luna followed everyone's gaze.
At the highest window of the tower...
A single figure stood in the shadows.
Watching the courtyard below.
Too far away to recognize.
Too still to be ordinary.
Then...
The bell fell silent.
The figure disappeared from the window.
Only then did the students begin breathing again.
Rowan took a slow step backward.
"We shouldn't be seen talking."
He turned and disappeared into the crowd before Luna could stop him.
She looked up at the empty tower.
For reasons, she couldn't explain...
She couldn't shake the feeling...
That whoever had been standing there...
Had been looking only at her.
- Writer
