Myths: The Folklore Trilogy

Chapter 7- In Which My Life Gets Infinitely Better

It was a pretty typical castle in shape - tall towers and a drawbridge at the front - but the thing that was different is that it was pure white. All the stones glimmered as if hit by sunbeams, even though the sky was overcast, and there was a soft glow over the stones. The glow was a color, but I couldn't really tell which.

All in all, it looked magical.

I heard gasps from around the boat. I didn't blame them. I would've gasped too if I hadn't been holding my breath.

"That's a SCHOOL?" Audrey said incredulously. "That's a castle!"

Mrs. Simone laughed. "I told you it was a sight you didn't want to miss."

Audrey shook her head. "Ok, I'm done. If this is all a dream or a joke someone is playing on me, stop now. There is absolutely no way I am going to an insane asylum which looks like a castle in the middle of the ocean."

"I don't think we're dreaming Audrey," I said breathlessly. "There is no way I could imagine something that looks like that."

"It belongs in the sky with the stars," Sophie whispered.

"Girls," Mrs. Simone announced, "Welcome to your new home!"

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After waiting on the boat in anticipation for about half an hour, we arrived at the school. It was even more fantastic from up close. We stood, staring, until the drawbridge (that was white too by the way) slowly lowered. Mrs. Simone led the way across into a courtyard.

There were girls EVERYWHERE. Talking in the courtyard, walking in the open hallways, studying on a bench...a few of them waved at us as we passed by, some clapped and several cheered.

It really is all girls, I thought. Ashlyn seemed to think the same. "Mrs. Simone ma'am," she said as politely as she could, "is this illness only for girls?" Mrs. Simone turned around and smiled. "This particular illness? Yes sweetie. You'll learn why soon enough." Then she turned back around and continued walking.

We followed her out of the courtyard into the building. The insides were a soft, comforting gray. We walked straight for a long time, until we came to a pretty, open room. There were big double doors at the other end. Mrs. Simone strode up the them, and it seemed as though she was about to run into them, when they slowly opened inward. She walked in, and we followed.

It was a dining hall. That was easy to tell from the tables and place settings already there. They were circular, and placed pretty much everywhere. But the tables were different colors. There were some that were brown, made out of wood, but there were some that looked like they were made out of metal. Also, there were tables that were white and really low to the ground and didn't have chairs. Suddenly I noticed ceramic tables in pools of water by the edge. Yes, in the water. Only the table top was above it.

Audrey bumped my elbow and pointed her finger upward. I looked, and gasped. There were tables attached to the wall twelve feet in the air. The chairs were attached to the table like some desks at school. There were no ladders, no stairs, no way I could see to get up there. They must have been for decoration, though I couldn't imagine why someone would decorate like that.

Mrs. Simone led us toward two brown tables near the back of the room. "For now, you can sit here. You'll get to eat at the more, ah, special tables later. You'll see soon enough." Then she walked away smiling.

I sat in my chair. "I'm tired of being told we'll see soon enough," I grumbled. Audrey sat down next to me. "I know, right!" She exclaimed. "The anticipation is killing me!"

Sophie sat on my other side. "Maybe we start at the normal tables, and the more insane we get, we go to different ones."

The table was silent. We hadn't though of that.