ACCORDING TO AUBREY, there was only one person who was allowed into the Headmaster's office without repercussions: Eli.
"Eli was one of the first that the Headmaster changed," Aubrey explained. She stared at the ground, her eyes dull and listless. "It was a long time ago, after our parents died in a car accident. We had been out on the streets for two years and the Headmaster caught us attempting to steal crackers from Walmart. He bought the crackers, and several other food items for us."
Sophie grimaced. It was hard to imagine Aubrey homeless. The designer clothes, the posh style, the fresh makeup –it made it impossible to picture her as a hobo.
Aubrey fiddled with her fingers and continued, "At first we didn't trust him. Like at all. I mean, the guy was very forward, very intimidating –unlike most normal adults. So we decided to throw away the food and move on to a different store. We wanted to avoid him as much as possible."
"And he found you again?" Sophie guessed.
The blond barked out a laugh. "Yeah. Not immediately, however. The Headmaster is smart. He managed to pace it out just right so we thought it was just a coincidence. That's how he gained our trust." She paused for a moment and looked around, expression haunted. "We eventually moved with him into the castle and started to train us. He changed Eli first. Eli happened to excel at everything and Headmaster groomed him to be his right hand man. That's why Eli was used to learn more about you, and convince you to join the games."
Sophie's lips curled. "So basically, I need to replace Eli?"
"Exactly," Aubrey answered with a grim nod. She stood elegantly and gestured for Sophie to follow suit. "I'm still not the best, but I do know what the Headmaster is looking for. And he already has a weird interest in you. If you happen to do amazing in classes, then he should take you under his wing."
Sophie stood and brushed the dust particles from her leggings. Her mind internally grimaced at the idea of being trained outside of classes –the period of running and trying to dodge random objects did not improve her attitude about being athletic. "Alright," she said. "Where do we start?"
Aubrey's gaze skirted around the room and finally landed on Sophie's shelves of books and knick-knacks. She walked over and picked up small plastic Poke-ball. "The whole idea behind our gym class is to develop the skill to multitask faster. We are supposed to be able to run and fight, all while dodging bullets or knives –or painful wooden poles."
She whirled around and chucked the Poke-ball at Sophie. "Think fast!"
The world around Sophie seemed to slow. Even with her newly heightened senses, she could just barely see the blur of red and white rushing toward her face. She started to move to the side and the plastic ball skimmed her cheek.
"Ouch!" Sophie cried, her hand flying to her face. The Poke-ball smacked against the wall behind her, cracking the stone and plaster. It thumped against the ground in pieces.
But before she could really recover, a small Christmas snow globe was zooming her way.
Sophie ducked. The snow globe sailed through, into her bathroom, and crashed against the stone floor. Her heartbeat became frantic as another object flew through the air toward her. "Aubrey!" she tried to protest as the small red candle hit her arm.
Aubrey ignored her. Her hands moved quicker than Sophie's eyes could process. She snatched up anything and everything from Sophie's shelves, her desk, and her bed –anything small enough to throw.
As Sophie dodged a sharpened pencil, she couldn't help but wonder if Aubrey had finally cracked.
It took Sophie a few more objects before her senses seemed to sharpen. Aubrey grabbed a pair of scissors and chucked them. Sophie's hand darted out, her fingers curling around the dual blades as it zoomed by her head. Her palm burned with the contact. Somehow, she managed to throw the pair of scissors right back at Aubrey.
Aubrey paused as the scissors zipped past her cheeks and burrowed deep into the wall behind her. A smile spread across her face. "There you go! That's the idea!"
It was crazy, but it worked.
~
Several days passed, and Aubrey continued to train Sophie outside of classes. Once Sophie mastered the ability to successfully turn Aubrey's weapons against her, they moved on. Sophie extensively practiced fighting Aubrey and was taught to stalk the other students from afar. The less she was detected, the more she stood out in class.
It wasn't long before Sophie surpassed even her professors.
Once her first week of classes had concluded, Sophie found herself summoned to the Headmaster's office. Her mind raced as she walked through the halls, following the path she had memorized. If their plan worked, then the Headmaster would let her stay in his office, alone, unchaperoned. All she needed was a few minutes to find that map...
She paused outside the door and lifted her hand. But before she could knock, she heard the Headmaster's voice through the door. "You may enter, my dear."
Sophie struggled not to cringe. She pushed open the heavy wooden door and stepped inside his office. The Headmaster sat behind his desk, a cheerful expression on his face. Her gaze quickly scanned over the room –one of the tricks that Aubrey had taught her. With a single glance, she managed to memorize the room. There were shelves to her right which held ancient text books, and filing cabinets hidden within a closet to her left. Then she returned her attention to the Headmaster himself. The more she stared at him, the more she realized just how fake his demeanor was.
He gestured for her to take a seat. "I'm very glad to see you again," he commented like an old forgotten uncle. "How was your first week as a vampire?"