(A/N) I noticed all kinds of horrible horrible mistakes in the previous chapter. Do forgive me for those. It's hard to edit your own work. I hope you like this chapter!
Please take the time to vote and comment, it would mean lots! The picture to the right is actually how I'd imagined Indy to look. Sorry for any and all typo's!
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A Few Days Later...
I sighed. This is it. I was a million miles away from home facing the biggest, most magnificent castle of all kind. It was made of stone and it was so beautiful, as it extended across three acres. A main building stood a few feet in front of the others. Each building stood a few feet before the next, forming a V.
At least six thousand people can easily be accommodated here. If it weren't for the scholarship, I'm sure it wouldn't have been easy to afford.
Were there really so many of us? I wondered.
"Okay, mom and dad. I'm here. If I don't come back for the holidays, it means one of the tigers have eaten me for snack. So remember that I love you..oh and sue this school." I said into the reciever.
Mom huffed and dad laughed.
"You'll have fun. I'm sure of it." dad said.
"Be careful honey. Don't cause trouble. If you do, don't get caught." mom said, with a laugh in her voice.
I grinned. "Have I ever gotten caught?"
"That's 'cause you never did anything, right?" dad asked in a confused voice.
I just laughed.
"Uh-huh. Yeah. That's what it is." I said.
"Love you, sweetie." mom said against dad's spluttering response.
Laughing I kept the phone. I looked up at the gate. God, these gargoyle's looked scary as shit. They were about ten feet tall, and their cruel, beady eyes trained were on you, like they knew you were going to mess up and we're ready to make barbecue of you.
Gulping, I walked towards the gates...that opened on their on. I must have jumped a mile in the air, suitcase and all. And I wouldn't be surprised if my hair was in just-got-electric-shock style.
"Jesus." I muttered. "Way to scare, newbees."
They should put a warning up, 'Doors open on their own'. God. Smoothing my hair down, I dragged my suitcase with me, into the castle. I was kinda expecting it so I didn't jump when the next set of doors opened. They led into a golden light lit corridor, where a lady in white awaited me.
I checked to make sure she had legs, just in case, before walking closer.
"Hello, my name is Indigo McCallen." I said, holding out my hand to her. I detected curiosity and a hint of worry when she saw me from afar. But as soon as I closed in on her I felt her emotions take a turn to trust and affection.
Okay, that part I'm used to.
"Hello, Indigo, I'm Maya White. I'm the Head Coordinator of this school. I hope you enjoy everything that we have to offer to you." she said, her voice crisp, and her smile sincere.
"I hope so too." I murmured.
Wonder what she was.
"You might want to hide your thoughts. Some may take advantage of that." she said as she started to lead me down the corridor.
Thinker. Clearly.
I threw up mental walls like my mom taught me when I was young. Of course then she'd taught me so I can keep other's emotions out, not to keep my thoughts in. But it came handy nonetheless.
I sent a silent prayer to my mother, God bless her, as I noticed that not a single soul could be seen walking outside on the corridors.
"Lights out at eight." Maya said, when I gave her a puzzled glance at the mention of such an early time to hit the sack, she explained.
"We need to be strict to keep accidents at bay."
"Accidents?" I asked with raised eyebrows.
Looking over at me with amusement, she said "Dominance issues are high amongst Shifters."
Dominance issues?
I must've had a funny look on my face, because Maya laughed.
"You'll get it soon enough." she said.
We walked a few more minutes in silence, and we reached a dorm, filled with doors opposite one another, along both sides of the wall.
"You'll be placed with Sara. She's a Thinker too." Maya said turning to me and handing me a key and pointing to the room that had the number 201 on it.
I nodded.
"I must warn you, you're the only Feeler here. People are going to wonder about you. I know you'll handle it. Otherwise you wouldn't be a Feeler. But, I thought you should know. Be ready by seven in the morning. Your schedule will be on the desk in your room. All the best."
So that's why I was offered a scholarship. I was the only one of my kind here. I sighed. Great.
I nodded.
"Thank you. Is there anything else I must remember in need to survive here?" I asked with a smirk.
"Don't get caught." Maya said with a wink and a laugh.
My mouth was still on the floor as she bid me good night and walked away.
Plucking up my courage and my jaw from the floor, I inserted the key into the lock on the door.
I opened the door to see two beds, on either side of the room, and one common big study table, with two chairs.
My side of the room was just plain white, with a bed next to the wall.
My roommate's side was neat, pink and very.. Empty.
Where was she? I wondered.
I shrugged. None of my business.
I opened my mind to pick up the emotions in the room. Excitement, loneliness, happiness all marred into one assaulted my senses. My roommate's marker was very.. Loud.
I started taking out my things and laying them neatly onto the shelf provided. I checked out the bathroom, it was neat and provided with a shower head, a sink and a toilet. I had enough space to change in here.
I pulled on pyjama bottoms and a holey t-shirt. Then splashing my face with cold water, I pulled my hair down from its ponytail holder.
I ran my wet fingers through it, massaging my scalp. God, that was a long trip from home. My back muscles were killing me, and I was dead tired.
I noticed that it was past ten. Realizing I should probably get some sleep, I walked towards my bed, but froze.
I felt two excited, VERY excited emotions. One I recognized as my roommate, the other seemed raw.. Almost like an animal's emotion streamlined into a human's.
I sucked a sharp breath in. A Shifter.
They were.. Climbing up the window?
I stepped away from the window as they climbed through it. My roommate was blonde. And tall and pretty, with wide brown eyes and a cute button nose. She was about my height. I was a good 5'11". The guy.. my eyebrows raised.
He was very good looking. With dark hair a tall stature and dark blue eyes that seemed almost luminous in the dark, he entered after Sara, who was staring at me.
She was skipping from shock to joy to excitement to fear to.. Disappointment?
The guy's eyes trained on me, and he growled and pushed Sara behind him, his eyes sparkling and glowing.
Realizing, I was looking at the animal and not the man, I calmed myself down, and let a breath out. But being an Empath, my emotions would gravitate out to others, on its own.
Which caused both of them immediately relax a little too, and I could read them.
Sara was happy to have a roommate, finally, shocked to see me, afraid I might snitch on her coming in late with a guy no less, and disappointed she wouldn't be able to do what ever she wanted to do with the Shifter. Emotions were very specific, if prodded into, their origin and reason can be identified easily.
The Shifter's emotions however were very primitive. His first and only thought that I was that and that he needed to protect.
But soon that feeling seemed to recede, but the Shifter's eyes remained luminescent.
"Feeler." he said, his voice more animal than man. But I knew he was calm and wouldn't attack.
"Shifter." I said calmly, my voice soft.
I knew how to talk to animals. They needed a calm and gentle murmur to know you weren't going to hurt them or what was theirs.
The guy let up from his aggressive pose, and I knew instinctively, that his animal had decided to trust me. He put his arm self Sara and pulled her next to him.
"Can I assume you wouldn't tell anyone who needn't know that we were out together?" he asked cocking his head at me in a way that was not human.
"Can I assume you wouldn't jump out of windows together and scare me from now on?" I asked, cocking my head too.
"Scare an Empath? I could rather easily be able to get a fish to breathe air." he said with a snort.
I leaned my head to the side and considered his words.
"Touche." I said, then added with a grin "I hope you guys will keep it down."
"For what I have in mind, there's going to be a lot of noise." he said, tossing a sly look at Sara.
I laughed, and both Sara and the Shifter blinked and started to smile, before Sara snapped out of it and smacked the Shifter on his chest.
"Have you no honor?! You're going to scare her away!" she said, but i could hear and feel the affection behind the words.
"Indigo." I said holding my hand out to her.
"Sara." she said with a grin, taking my hand in a brisk, enthusiastic shake.
"Jeff." the Shifter said, nodding at me and smiling.
I nodded back, with a grin of my own.
That's when I noticed something else. Something so beautiful I can't believe I'd overlooked or before. Maybe it was because I never knew it exists, so I didn't recognize it.
It was the most beautifying empathetic bond between them. It was luminescent but invisible if your don't look hard. It glowed and sent out sparks. Every move Jeff made, Sara complimented it automatically, the bond betwen them strong like their love. It seemed to always pull them together.
It shared emotions and life, and love and mindless trust. It was so beautiful, as it twisted intricately between their hearts.
I looked up and noticed that Sara was talking to me. I tuned in to listen to what she had to say.
"-never met an Empath before. It's so amazing. I thought people were kidding when they say an Empath's presence can brighten the darkest day but really it so cool!"
I put up my filter so that her loud emotions don't overload me.
I laughed.
"Brighten the day? I don't know about that. But I can sure get you free ice cream. And that always brightens mine." I said with a wink.
Sara's expression blanked. She looked at Jeff.
"Are you sure you're my mate? I think it's her." she said sticking her tongue out at Jeff.
Mate? What's that? I wondered.
I shrugged. Maybe it was some Shifter thing. It was a passing comment that she didn't ponder on, so I coudn't really understand anything about it. But it escaped my thoughts soon, as I watched Sara and Jeff interact. Love, joy, contentment and possessiveness were their most prominent emotions around one another. This was more than just a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship...what were they?
Oh, if I'd known what they were, maybe I'd have been ready for tomorrow.
Then again, nothing can make you ready to meet your mate.
But none of this crossed my mind as I spent some girl time with Sara after she shooed a pouty six-foot something Shifter out through the window to spend time with me.
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Hope you liked it. Don't worry my darlings, the story has JUST begun!
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