The Vale

Bonus Chapter

This takes place some days after Damian told her Dean followed her parents to Di Hipsodat.

This time last year I was smoking weed with my friends, former friends, in the treehouse at Jessica's backyard. It was the weekend before we started our exam. We wanted to do something together since most of us didn't read, so instead of preparing for the exam we decided to have a small get together that involved alcoholic beverages and weed, lots of weed.

This year, I'm standing in front of Mr. Snickle. I didn't pick the name. It's the holographic magical system, the headmaster had installed before going off to Di Hipsodat with my parents. It's funny how time flies. If someone told me last year that I would be here in a boarding school for witches, I'd probably punch the person for teasing about my sanity. But here I am, living the dream... not. I'm not even human anymore. I guess I never was.

Why did they give it a mustache? I wonder. It's a fucking hologram. Mr. Snickle is just another pathetic excuse for protection and an improvement in the magic defense system of the school. The Vale isn't out to the world yet. Most people that aren't supernatural thinks this place is for troubled teenagers and some parents comes in now and then to make enquiries. The headmaster turns them away, of course. He uses the 'your child isn't troubled enough for The Vale.' I mean, come on. Who the fuck says that anyway?

To the outsiders, Mr. Snickle is a holographic tour guide that appears whenever there's someone that's not registered in the school system at the gate. It's gives them all the fake report like when the school was founded and  histories that aren't even related. While the hologram gives the play by play of the amazing lectures they give, it also scans them for threat.

How I wish the headmaster thought of that before? Maybe we wouldn't be here.

Everyone else thinks it's cool but I personally think it's a waste of effort, resources, money and time, which I know the headmaster has abundance of.

The school is silent because everyone is preparing for exam. I should be in the library studying or at least pretending to but Mr. Groff is onto me. He knows I only use the place as a hideout.

I should be grateful for the silence. I remember how annoying it was when they came back from their compulsory five days holiday.

"Can you please keep quiet, Mr. Snickle?" I cut off and glare at the glitching image in front of me. It isn't supposed to just appear but somehow it's blocking my entrance to the common room.

"Welcome to The Vale Academy, here we teac—" the stupid hologram won't even listen to me.

"Shut. The. Fuck. Up." I grit out the tone would affect it.

"-drama club, art club, science—"

"Lauf." I mutter the spell under my breath and walk through the hologram. "Sorry, Snicks."

I can't believe this happening.

"Welcome... Wel.. Wel... come... Welcome... Welcome." I walk into the common room leaving Mr. Snickle to glitch and hopefully dies. I mean crash. It should crash.

The spell I casted was just a malfunctioning spell and I haven't used it on anyone or anything until now. Mr. Snickle should be honored to be my first.

I frown when my eyes settle on the  large box sitting in the corner of the room. It's a tradition that started with some pioneer gemini witches student of The Vale. Everytime they are about to start exam, they create a large box and encourage readers to write down what they want in a sheet of paper and put inside the box. It's like a suggestion box except no one is going to open it. I've never experienced anything like this before but Nate said when it's twelve the gemini witches leader would set the box on fire.