Fated to Meet You

Chapter 5

Katryna is finally leaving home and getting away from her bastard of a father. She fought tooth and nail to keep her school supplies from him last week and the thought of wishing him goodbye made her grimace. The next few months in the Academy was all she was looking forward to.

Professor Sierra greets her with a warm smile, “Are you ready, dear?” Katryna doesn’t even glance back at her home, giving a firm nod. “Splendid!” And with a snap, they fade into an ocean of color, reappearing back in the previous square after a moment. The professor laughs lightly at Katryna’s confused face, “The Academy is not far from here. Any frequent visitor of Canted Square will be able to direct you the proper way should you find yourself alone and in need of guidance.” She gestures a bit to the little flowing lights zipping through the air. “Only be wary of the pixies, as mischief is in their nature.”

Katryna nods, following Professor Sierra as she leads the way towards Ariel’s Academy. “Are we only able to get here? Will I be able to learn how to teleport?”

“The Academy has safety enchantments put upon it that does not allow us to transport to it directly. Assuming you do well your first semester, in the second you will learn how to transmit yourself to any location you know well. I would recommend familiarizing yourself with the square when you have time free of studying and work. It will make the process much easier for you.”

Katryna nods, and as they finally exit the town, the path seems to lower. As they get closer, a castle slowly starts to appear, in a valley below. They start making their way down a long staircase, and Katryna doesn’t take her eyes from the sight for a second. She had never seen a castle before, but this was definitely as grand as all the fairytales told them to be. It was made of white stone, silver accents glistening in the most brilliant way. Outside the front was a huge courtyard with water fountains and stone hedges, everything was kept in perfect condition.

Walking through the castle courtyard, Katryna could see others, running around and laughing. Little groups sat in circles, some performing small spells that made the water in the fountains circle into patterns or shapes. Others were changing parts of their bodies for furry ears or claws. Her favorite sight, however, was watching a dark black wolf trying to jump through water hoops. Despite being struck by the size of the creature, seeing it chasing after these moving water circles, making the girl laugh, causes a warmth in her stomach. This place was amazing.

Katryna starts to lag behind a bit, getting caught up in the scene in front of her. After the wolf successfully gets through three hoops in a row, causing the girl to cheer loudly, his body starts to shift. Soon before her is a head of curly black hair. Her jaw drops slightly, surprise taking her. “Did that wolf just turn into a boy?” Professor Sierra gives a little laugh.

“Oh my dear, do you not know that an Alpha is a wolf? Almost all of the males here are wolf shifters.” Although accepting this fact quickly due to everything else she has seen, Katryna still can’t pull her eyes away from the boy. Professor Sierra grabs her arm and starts to guide her to walk fast, “Come along, Katryna. We do have a schedule to follow,” she nods a bit, looking away to keep walking. But something compels her to look back again, and when she does she sees the most beautiful pair of gray eyes.

She lifts her hand, about to point at him before their gaze gets separated by the entrance to the castle. Those eyes. She knew those eyes. Those were the eyes from her vision! She needed to find him again. Katryna glances around at the regal castle walls, then at her arms full of books and her staff. Her gaze finally lands on the little Professor in front of her, still guiding the way towards.. She didn't really know where. She sets her resolve to find the boy later, now focusing on getting her bearings together. “Professor, where are we going?”

“To the dorms. You are one of our final students to be enrolled, which gives you the lucky advantage of an almost empty dorm room. Although each room is to hold four students, yours will only hold two this semester. Please do be careful that you remember which dorm is yours, the boys and girls are not put into separate towers and walking into a boys dorm can be quite detrimental to a young lady’s sanity.” She nods quickly, taking it very seriously before seeing the humorous glint in the professor’s highs.

“I will do my best, professor. Thank you.” They walk another minute in silence before Katryna fills it again. “You said that the alpha’s are wolf shifters? Are they like werewolves?” She remembers the little ears and tails she saw coming and going on others. It was daytime, werewolves couldn’t shift during the day, could they? And don’t they go mad when they turn?

“They used to be werewolves long ago, but they struck a deal with the moon goddess and are now considered wolf shifters. Some bloodlines do have the curse of the werewolves, however, which are a mix between what legends you have likely heard and what wolf shifters are. I would avoid using that term unless it is for a school assignment. Many do grow quite offended and can be aggressive at the thought.” Katryna takes a deep breath, wondering what else she could say wrong to get her in trouble. “In your room you will have a book with a basic history of sorceresses and wolf shifters, be sure to read it soon as it will save you a lot of conflict with terminology as well as keep you in one piece while you adjust to the new environment.”

This causes Katryna to relax a bit, “Thank you, professor. I am very excited to be here and do not want to cause trouble.” Especially considering that she was hoping to work hard enough to earn that scholarship. It wasn’t that she minded the idea of helping around the school, but more that she wanted to learn as much as possible. They walk up a staircase now, entering one of the towers. She counts the doors as they pass by, trying to remember how many to know which will be hers, but she finds it to be much easier once they arrive at her door. She is roomed third from the top.

Katryna feels slightly winded from all of the stairs, “This will be your dorm,” Professor Sierra stops at the door. “Your schedule will be on your bed as well as a map and the book I spoke about. Please, make yourself at home and try to familiarize yourself with the castle before classes begin tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Professor Sierra. I look forward to learning from you,” She gives an eager smile, waiting for the professor to leave before entering into the room. She glances around, seeing several bags of items on one half of the room, but nothing on the other. Making her way to the empty side, she spots two books and a few letters with her name on the bed. Perfect, her area. She sets everything down before sitting and picking the items up. “Introduction to Magic” is the title of the first book, “History of Wolf Shifters” being that of the second. Katryna sets the papers to the side before diving into the books. It’s time to figure out what she’s really gotten herself into.