Six vials and a mountain of piling questions- that's what you left Jack's with. Rattling inside with each step were handfuls of small circular tablets; white and powdery to the touch, sweet and icy, like a snow plum to the taste.
Anyone who saw them would just assume they were medication or vitamins. One for each boy, one extra in case. 'For sleep,' you were supposed to say; it was Jack's idea.
The newest face in your kitsunebi vampire crusade, as it turned out, had a lot of interesting ideas- and a lot of interesting stories. After mysteriously receiving his invitation to attend Arcadia Castle Academy, not unlike you had, he accepted at once. According to him, different people got invited to study there. And while it was generally Lady Petrikov in charge of who and why, Sylabil had invited students before too. There was no Harry Potter story here however- Jack knew he was a warlock, and a talented one at that.
Cadere knew this too, Jack said. And he knew Jack's family. "But I won't bore you with the details. It was Cadere who was the interesting one, not me."
Where you'd heard it, you didn't even remember for sure, but Jack telling you Cadere used to be one of the best vampires hunters in the world brought back memories you didn't even know you had. His cloak gliding across the fog like liquid ebony, his gloved fingers wrapping around the stake within it, those violet eyes going black... Cadere the vampire hunter was all too clear. But how did a man who apparently spent his entire life hunting vampires not only become one, but end up teaching them at a school?
All Jack had to say was that Cadere was looking for something.
"What?"
"Forgiveness."
~
The dynamics in the night dorm had taken a sharp 180 after the events of the fall break. Or rather, the lack thereof. Not seeing their human friend was a bit of a surprise, but not as much of a surprise as the way it forced everyone to spend time with each other the way they'd forgotten they did before she came to Arcadia Academy. It was almost hard to believe there even was a time at this school before y/n started tugging at their minds and playing lullabies on their ribcages.
They'd talked since the week started, Bel being the one to bring her up. He didn't dare mention where they'd spent their time together, especially around Dimitri. They wondered where y/n had been the Monday. They assumed she was still gone- never wandering into the night dorm library to find her listening to a certain redhead. Yes, although he didn't say anything, Roman knew where she was. Avery didn't say anything either.
After the knowledge of y/n's return passed around the dorm, a vibrant intensity surged throughout the halls. Like the world's most harrowing job interview, everyone was on their best behaviour, eager, pleasant to each other- but knew that only one of them would get to y/n first.
The only one absent from all this was Lucian. Though his friends at first tried to talk to him here or there, it was no use. The progress Cadere had made in helping the boy since first meeting him so many years ago was significant but vulnerable and it killed Lucian to know that if he did nothing, y/n would be hurt by the others, and if he did something, y/n would be hurt by him.
Whatever the others were struggling with was of no help to Avery however. It was a little too easy to get what he wanted, almost boring. A little too tempting. He preferred the pleasures of moderation, something he knew the others would call him a hypocrite for. But the steps he had to take to ensure success were fun in and of themselves! Everyone was always so preoccupied as of late that a quick detour down day student lane was not a problem. Something he hadn't done since 'disappearing' amid the 'you stole from me now taste the fire' era, but something that never quite lost its flavour.
But the library wasn't as fun now that y/n was going to it less. Avery knew this was probably because Lucian stopped writing sonnets in his study like the suffering artist he pretended to be. For him though... this was art. This was life. And Avery was a master at mimicking it. But Avery hadn't been looking for y/n at the library over the weekend. He already knew she was with good sweet Eleanor.
Those slick fingers slid across several thick spines before falling upon the student database. She'd never told him her full name. But it hadn't been hard to figure out.
Petrikov was organized for a scatterbrain; every scholarship, every document, every admission letter was stored somewhere in the information hall of the library. And the library was so gargantuan that shifting into anyone would do. Although he'd have preferred shifting into y/n.
Avery found the location of the letters he'd been looking for in alphabetical order. He probably could have done this sooner but with a smirk, combed through, knowing it was worth the long-game. Now he just had to find her name. But either Petrikov wasn't as organized as he thought she was or someone had gotten to it first, because when he flipped to where y/n's admission letter should have been, he was met with the bottom of the empty cabinet.
~
You walked into your room for the first time since last night. Simone's bed had been completely stripped, but you tried a little too hard not to look at her side of the room in case...
Her side was empty but Simone remained. You could hear that red canopy being drawn, her footsteps entering after meeting with Theo and the other student leaders, the door closing carefully behind her so as not to wake you. It was the little things. "No mail today," she'd tell you even though it never struck you that anyone was writing to her. And you never thought to ask.
You dropped your bag on your bed, and left the room, half expecting to run into Simone on the way out. You were going to go to the infirmary, but that didn't happen.
"Y/n!" A voice called a few hurried steps out the dormitory. Hailing you like a cab was your English teacher, her brown eyes less colourful under the cloudy autumn sky.
Sylabil walked with purpose towards you, although she walked with purpose everywhere, you thought. Then realization struck when you remembered you were at Jack's instead of being in class.
"Don't worry, you're not in trouble," she said jokingly. "I just... wanted to talk to you. Actually, Lady Petrikov does. She's waiting for you in her office. Can you head there straight away?"
"Um, why does she want to talk to me?" You asked, almost leaving.
"Like I said, you're not in trouble. You'll have to talk to her," she sighed. "But I want you to know that Simone'll be just fine, okay? She's coming around. The severity of the wounds was really- I understand if you don't feel up to patrol tonight."
You really didn't.
"I don't know, I kind of forgot," you lied.
"You won't be letting anyone down by not going, there's no point if it'll just bring more bad than good," she said. This made you think of Theo- alarming you when she continued. "I know how demanding patrol is. And school too. Our best students are quitting or, talking to me, I know how it is. You're lucky you have Eleanor and the rest of your friends. And they're lucky they have you..."
"I was about to visit Simone in the infirmary," you said.
"They're not letting anyone see her right now," Sylabil sighed, brows furrowed. "I already went."
"Okay, well, thank you." Gazing off towards the tower where Lady Petrikov awaited, you turned to leave.
"Y/n?"
...
"You know you can talk to me, right?"
With a nod and weak smile, you disappeared. By the time you got to the clock tower, your eyes were dry.
Lady Petrikov's office was overbearingly mundane compared to the woman whose office it was. Like the rest of the castle, it was old and charming in its own right, but aside from the overwhelming number of plants in the room and on her desk, Lady Petrikov was the most interesting part of it.
The blonde head of day class thanked you for coming, and pedantically adjusted her round frames before shaking your hand. She had a small frame for her height, and a nervous energy about her that didn't help your predicament. For some reason she reminded you of a bird, the way her eyes didn't last on one thing for too long.
"It's really terrible what happened, yesterday," she said, sitting down across from you.
You wished you were in the infirmary with Simone so someone could tell you what did happen.
"This academy is meant to be a safe place for all of our students and we care about all of our students," she continued. "Sir Enebris and I want to ensure that you feel not just safe but happy here."
But it's too late for Simone, you almost said. Instead you nodded.
"I know you might have trouble sleeping in your room tonight, and if that's the case, while there aren't many options in the day dorm, we can find you a temporary place to sleep. Your room has been attended to already but- I know I myself have endured- still endure- nightmares... anxiety... if you are having difficulties and need that distance I understand."
The truth was, if you hadn't slept in Eleanor's room you probably wouldn't have slept. And despite Eleanor's suggestion, you wanted to (but didn't want to) believe there was something else. Someone or something out there that was coming for you now. Even Maurice arrived at the same thought. The idea of having to pick a brother to side with bothered you.
"... but in this case we would make an exception. Although he seems cold, Sir Enebris would do anything to help."
"Sorry, what was that?"
"The night dorm always has space," she repeated.
You were thinking of asking for permission to stay with Eleanor, but then that would raise questions about Theodore, who was supposed to be bedridden.
You met Petrikov's pleading eyes, green as the makeshift forest around her. You wondered if that's where Theodore was- in his little house in the forest- or being tortured, tormented-used for some unthinkable purpose. If Cadere and Petrikov would really do anything for their students, and Maurice would do anything for Theodore, then you would do anything for your friends. The kioku plums were already in your room, a plan of action already underway. You couldn't stand to remain stagnant while time moved without you, against you.
"I think I'd be least reminded of everything if I stayed in the night dorm."
~
Eleanor was not thrilled.
Having already returned from Jack's earlier, with curfew and patrol looming overhead, you knew you didn't have the time to run back and forth, portal to portal. It was risky enough on good days, and your friend didn't tell you anything you didn't already know.
"Are you going on patrol?" You asked, eager to move on.
"Well I'll have to won't I?" He replied sharply. "I wish... I wish that things were normal. That Maurice could've just been here to take the stupid teacher's job and Theodore was normal and Simone was fine and we were all just losing to her at blackjack again. I want to study for exams."
"Me too," you surprised yourself saying. "Maurice took the job before this happened though..."
"And you really think he just missed his brother?" Eleanor snapped. "He probably never had any plans to tell me about all of... this. Now I know what he was doing all that time 'traveling,' and even then! I don't feel like I can trust anyone."
You sat in silence, at a loss for words.
"I have a bad feeling about all of this y/n, a really bad feeling."
"We don't know what'll happen. If I find... what we're looking for, then I find it. If I get answers, I get them. But I'm not going to do nothing if I'm being given the chance to do something."
Eleanor stood up, one of the last people in the usually lively dining hall. When he spoke, the chandelier above remedied his eyes unseeable through the lenses of his glasses. White, sullen, like Maurice's tea.
"You're not some hero from one of your books. This is real life."
When you opened your mouth to argue he held up a silencing hand.
"I'll see you tomorrow. Let me know what you find."
~
It was hardly ever as though Avery was gone. To the untrained eye, he was careless, wild even- but the level of control in his choices was parallel to none. Bel sat impatiently on the common room sofa beside Roman, who leaned over the arms of it with a tired expression.
Dimitri and Lucian, the lawful of the bunch were not unusually absent. As of late that's how things were; Dimitri micro-managing one thing or another, Lucian suffering in silence.
One of the doors upstairs opened with a faint creak and closed softly, seemingly of its own volition.
Bel craned his head, smiling. Powers were funny, and their magic not lost on him, even after all these years.
"I'd offer you my arm down these steps my dear if only I could see you," Avery said sweetly. Someone slapped him like a disproving parent across the back of his head from behind, sending the other boys into fits of laughter.
The purple haired boy rubbed his head, equally amused.
The girl behind the sound of the descending footsteps slowly came to life like warm breath materializing in the cold. Her sad eyes locked onto the rest of the night students through locks of wavy dark hair, the colour of seaweed.
"I heard we were having a meeting," Julianne said without conviction.
"We are," Bel said with too much.
The girl didn't say anything else. Avery watched her carefully as she sat on one of the empty love seats.
"The rest better hurry up, patrol starts soon," Roman said. What he'd really meant was, 'get here quick so we can leave here quick.'
As if on cue, the white haired Ebony sauntered in, clearly uninterested in being there. She stood by Julianne, who looked much younger by comparison. Where Ebony was slender and ghostly, Julianne was shorter, thicker, and darker, with cheeks that had the fullness of someone just beginning their studies at Arcadia.
Soon after she was followed by Trinity, the tallest of the girls, uniform over her shoulder and blue hair as if she was ready to retire for the night. Nobody gossiped or talked about the meeting that was called or why it was called, even though meetings were infrequent what with Cadere's recent absences. Leyla arrived not long after, but no one said anything to her. Avery stood with his arms folded over his chest, expectantly.
It was then that Dimitri entered, his feathery black hair shiny against the dimly lit candles. He stood before the rest of the night class, as if proudly leading a procession, even though his red eyes were serious. That's how he always was when he was with Cadere, who was right behind him- no hat, violet eyes narrowed.
He met the stares of each student, some more reluctant to look back than others. Cadere cleared his throat, unnecessarily. Then he informed the group that a student would be staying in the dorm temporarily. A day student.
Before he continued, he asked where Lucian was, possibly annoyed, probably concerned. Dimitri said something to Cadere and Cadere continued.
He made his rules very clear, even though his rules were always clear, and constantly being challenged. Nine powerful vampires was a lot for one man, reputation or not. But nobody was to bother this girl (some second year), nobody was to enter her room, she was their guest for the next few days or so, and anyone interfering with her studies in any way would have him to answer to.
Avery was glad Lucian wasn't here for this. He probably would have made a fool of himself. Actually, Avery wished Lucian was here for this.
While none of the girls seemed to care too much except for some timid excitement here or there, it was clear Cadere wanted to diminish her staying here as much as possible. It was temporary, necessary, and life would go on. Nobody needed to know the concerns he had for y/n, and the promises he'd made.
It was the boys who all seemed to have something to say but failed to. Bel seemed unphased, a dreamy smile on his face as if he had seen this all already. Roman was a statue. Avery pretended to listen carefully and met Cadere's looks (the majority of which were directed at him) with mock respect. Dimitri all the while stood with his arms behind his back, as if he had as much authority as Cadere.
But that wasn't the only thing. Patrol was going to be removed during the next term.
Several of the boys wanted to argue, while the girls knew better. Cadere told them to be quiet and they obeyed. He wouldn't say why, and didn't have the time anyway. Patrol was starting soon, and y/n would be arriving with her things.
~
"I heard everything that happened with your roommate," Dimitri said sombrely. "You're more than welcome to spend the night here. Sleep is important."
The boy took your single bag without asking, upstairs alongside you, insisting he carry it.
"Things will get better. This is the same room as last time," he said, fixing you with an unreadable expression.
You thanked him, before he excused himself and disappeared for class.
So back again. Nothing had changed in the room as far as you knew. It had the same untouched quality that most of the night dorm had, despite its apparent age. It was beautiful, bigger than yours and Simone's place. Thinking of her left your heart sinking but you tried to remember what you were doing here.
You were here to sleep.
You had to be careful, being closer to the potential culprit also meant being closer to Cadere. It wasn't hard to recall the question you'd asked Maurice, but you wondered if hiding all your knowledge was really protecting you or not.
"If Cadere finds out you know, you can say goodbye to your memories."
Was that really a bad thing? You hadn't decided.
Unpacking just a few of your things, teddy bear included, you retrieved the vials of pills. 'Sleeping' pills. Dimitri told you that Cadere still expected you to follow curfew and not disturb the night students. You wouldn't have to disturb anyone if they weren't disturbing your friends. Although you had trouble being certain who you could trust just like Eleanor did. Could you imagine? The secrets being kept from him by his own brother.
Guilt clawed at your chest. It was as the door knocked that you realized how similar you were to both Maurice and Eleanor.
"Come in!" You called, hastily throwing the vials back in your bag.
The door opened by itself and for a second you were convinced vampires weren't the only supernatural beings at this school. You held back your scream when a girl appeared after closing the door. She fastly drew a finger to her lips, imploring you to be quiet. You didn't know what else to do.
Without saying anything, the green haired girl hurriedly rushed to your side, sitting next to you on the bed and scanning the perimeter with her nearly white eyes.
When she was absolutely certain of something, she turned her attention to you, every now and then glancing at the door.
"You shouldn't be here," she whispered quickly. "You can't stay here, you should go home."
"What?" You said a bit too loudly. "Who are you?" You asked lowering your voice.
"I'm- I'm a night student..." she said.
"You're Julianne," you realized. The only night student you'd never crossed paths with- the one who could disappear.
"Never mind," Julianne replied curtly. "I shouldn't be here. I'm just here to tell you that it's not safe."
"What do you mean? Not safe here?"
"Not safe here. At Arcadia."
Julianne stood up and began walking towards the door.
"Wait!" You whisper yelled. "What aren't you telling me? Why isn't it safe?"
"You're in danger," she said. "I can't look at you anymore. I'm sorry. Please be careful. Don't say a word to anyone."
And before you could protest, she was gone, literally, lingering only long enough with the courtesy to close the door behind her.
You sat on your bed, watching the door. Not long ago you'd talked with Maurice about keeping vampires out of your room once Jack came back. Now look at you. You were in a vampire's room, in a predator's cave.
And what about Julianne? Someone you hardly knew existed came to warn you about... what exactly?
A few voices downstairs told you that patrol was beginning. You knew you should have spoken to Maurice about this before agreeing to stay a night or two here, but Theodore's absences along with what happened to Simone was just too much. You unknowingly listened for Eleanor's voice.
It was then that you realized you'd need some water to swallow your pills. You'd head downstairs- and if anyone questioned you you were on patrol. You only hoped you wouldn't run into Cadere, he didn't seem the 'let me get you a glass of water' type.
Not long after you turned the corner, your fears were realized.
"Did I not instruct you to stay in your room after curfew?"
Cadere's tall figure looked over yours in the suddenly suffocating hall.
"I-I'm sorry I didn't realize-"
"Didn't realize that there's a clock right on your dresser?" He said sardonically. "You've been spending too much time with Maurice- breaking rules as if that's what they were made for."
"I'm sorry I was just looking for the washroom," you said in one breath.
"Okay stop, that's enough," Cadere said suddenly, holding up a ringed hand. You watched him break into a coy smile that instantly made him look younger. The minute you blinked, the only thing left of him was that smile. The blonde hair had become purple, the eyes had become blue, and the cloak had become a uniform.
You angrily struck Avery across the chest.
"What is wrong with you?" You seethed.
He held up his hands defensively, purple ring glinting as much as his eyes.
"I was just having fun. Everyone's too serious around here."
You glared at him for a second- his little stunt couldn't have been at a better time. You were actually freaked out. With a sigh, you asked him how he was. It had been a while.
"Just lonely without you," he replied, causing you to roll your eyes.
"You share this dorm with girls."
"I hadn't noticed," he said pretending to be appalled. "Although I remember seeing you with Lucian's clothes, I thought these sleepovers were done and you'd, shall we say, sobered up."
"I'm here because... because I can't be in my room right now."
"And apparently not that room either, what's the rush?"
You explained to him you were just going to get a glass of water. His blue eyes ignited and before you could say anything else you had an arm wrapped around your shoulder and he'd begun walking just like the many times before.
"I'll get you a drink, I'm a bit parched myself," he said. "Besides, didn't I promise you a tour of the night dorm?"