Life at the House of Night: Marked

Life at the House of Night: Marked: Chapter 1

Great. Just freaking great. I was having such a peaceful life and then, the next thing I know, I get Marked! I headed to the "closest" House of Night by plane from my home state of Texas, which was in Tulsa, Oklahoma. My dad and stepmother didn't like it. My mom, sister, and brother were okay with it. My friends that I had thought of as family cared about my safety so they said for me to go. So, here I was, going to the House of Night. Luckily, one of my friends used makeup to cover up my Mark. Why? Because I actually decided to cut my hair rather short... really short like a boy's haircut. I am Julia Prince, about-to-be loner. Ugh, it's gonna feel like eighth grade all over again. Within a few hours of both plane and taxi, I finally made it.

A beautiful lady came toward me. Okay, now I know she's a vamp. Her eyes were almond-shaped, having a deep, mossy green hue. Her skin was actually a flawless, creamy color. Her hair color had an auburn shade of red that was long enough to pass her shoulders.

"You must be Julia Prince." She gave me a warm smile.

"...Yes." I replied, looking away.

Jeez, could they at least not say my last name? It sounded strange.

"I see that you do not like your name." The woman said. "You can change it if you want to, but you will stick to that name in the House of Night."

I was quiet for a while. What should I do? Should I change my name or keep it. After pondering about it, I nodded when I decided.

"...My favorite color is red." I replied.

"So you wish to be called Red?" To my surprise, she smiled instead of giving me a strange look. "Very well. Welcome to the House of Night, Red." Instead of giving me a normal handshake, she grasped my forearm gently and shook it. "Blessed be."

I guess that was their tradition of a handshake so I did the same thing as soon as I grasped her forearm back.

"Blessed be." I said back. "Who are you and who do you worship?"

"My name is Neferet, High Priestess of the House of Night." She introduced herself. "We worship the Goddess of Night, Nyx. We have a ceremony regarding to her and the five elements."

"Five?" I repeated. "I thought there were four: earth, air, fire, and water."

"Those and spirit." Neferet smiled. "Now we should get your schedule but until then, you should have a little tour here. Follow me."

The High Priestess showed me around the school: dorms, library, cafeteria, et cetera. Not only that, but she gave me "school uniform" which was just... a dark purple sweater with black plaid lines going through it. There was a silver emblem that would rest over my heart that resembled a spiral going around and around in a circle. Giving me the okay to put it over my shirt, I did so. For some reason, I had a weird vibe about her but shrugged it off. I suddenly stopped in front of a statue of the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. It was then I realized that my next words were totally unplanned.

"Nyx!" I gasped in recognition.

I scratched the back of my head right after I said the name. Why did it feel like I've met her in person before?

"You're exactly right." Neferet said though looked at me curiously. "We're at the Temple of Nyx. Hmmmm... I think that's about it. School hours are from 8 P.M. to 3 A.M. Understand?"

Not feeling like talking, I nodded my head. Personally, I didn't mind of the whole night class thing. Sort of reminded me of this anime Vampire Knight. Yes, I was a nerd of anime and video games and music. However, that wasn't why I was quiet. I knew I've seen Nyx before, but where?