Welcome to Ashcroft
672 Words
The taxi slowed to a stop in front of towering wrought-iron gates.
Above them, carved into black stone, were the words:
ASHCROFT UNIVERSITY
“Some Knowledge Demands a Price.”
Amara Hayes stepped out, pulling her suitcase behind her.
A cold wind swept across the campus, sending dead leaves spiraling through the air.
She frowned.
“It’s August… why are there dead leaves already?”
The driver unloaded her luggage without saying a word.
“Beautiful place,” Amara said with a smile.
The old man stared at the university.
His face turned pale.
“You should leave.”
Amara blinked.
“What?”
He looked around nervously before lowering his voice.
“If you hear knocking at your door after midnight…”
He swallowed hard.
“…don’t answer it.”
Before Amara could ask another question, the driver jumped into his taxi and sped away.
“What was that about?”
⸻
Students filled the campus, laughing, taking pictures, and greeting old friends.
It looked like every normal university.
For a moment, Amara laughed at herself.
Maybe the driver was just trying to scare me.
She checked her phone.
No Signal.
“That’s strange.”
The moment she stepped farther through the gates…
Her phone buzzed.
The signal returned.
She shrugged and continued walking.
⸻
Inside the grand administration building, crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling while portraits of every former headmaster lined the walls.
One portrait caught her attention.
The founder.
Headmaster Alistair Ashcroft
1784–1802
His painted eyes seemed…
Alive.
She quickly looked away.
“Miss Hayes?”
A woman in a navy-blue uniform smiled warmly.
“Welcome to Ashcroft University.”
“I’m Dean Eleanor Brooks.”
She handed Amara a student ID, a campus map, and a thick rulebook.
“We have only one rule that students often find amusing.”
Amara smiled.
“I’ve heard universities have strange traditions.”
The dean didn’t smile back.
“Never leave your dormitory room between 3:13 a.m. and 3:33 a.m.”
Silence.
Amara chuckled awkwardly.
“Is that… some kind of prank?”
“No.”
The dean’s voice was calm.
“It isn’t.”
⸻
Later that afternoon, Amara found her dormitory.
Dormitory 7
Her roommate was already unpacking.
A cheerful blonde girl looked up.
“You must be Amara!”
She smiled brightly.
“I’m Lily Bennett.”
Within minutes, they were talking like old friends.
Lily showed her around the room before leaning closer.
“So…”
“You’ve heard the story?”
“What story?”
“The one about Dormitory 13.”
Amara laughed.
“I heard it doesn’t exist.”
Lily’s smile faded.
“It doesn’t.”
“Then why is everyone afraid of it?”
Lily hesitated.
“My brother studied here.”
“He disappeared during his second year.”
“They told us he transferred.”
She looked down at a framed family photo.
“…but he never came home.”
A heavy silence settled over the room.
⸻
That evening, orientation began in the university’s massive auditorium.
Hundreds of freshmen filled the seats.
The headmaster stepped onto the stage.
“Welcome…”
“…to Ashcroft University.”
His voice echoed through the hall.
“You are now part of a family that has existed for more than two centuries.”
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then…
Everything went completely dark.
Students gasped.
A few nervous laughs echoed through the room.
Seconds later, the lights returned.
The headmaster was still standing on stage.
Smiling.
As if nothing had happened.
But someone was missing.
One chair in the front row…
Was empty.
Amara frowned.
“I’m sure someone was sitting there.”
She looked around.
No one else seemed to notice.
No one even looked toward the empty seat.
Then she heard a whisper beside her.
Very close to her ear.
“…You remember.”
Amara spun around.
There was no one behind her.
When she faced the stage again…
The headmaster was staring directly at her.
And he smiled.
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