"Freak! Get away from us!" A young boy shouted.
"B-But, I just wanted to see if I could, maybe—" A young girl started, gripping onto a bright red ball with a desperate look in her eyes.
"Play with us? We've said it before. Monsters aren't allowed to play with humans." A girl added, sticking out her tongue and scrunching up her nose, the other kids around her following suite.
"Come on guys, let's not waste anymore of our time, the freak doesn't deserve it. We can get another ball, this ones been contaminated anyways." The boy said, and with that, the group of kids ran away from the young girl, leaving her standing there holding the bright red ball watching as the other orphans played at a further end of the field.
"I-I just wanted to play wi-with them." The girl said, tears starting to roll down her cheeks.
"Dear Kiara, why are you crying?" Someone said, and the young girl, Kiara, turned and looked up to see a rather eccentrically dressed man standing just behind her. She recognized him as Mephisto Pheles, the one man that has never looked at her with fear or disgust.
"Nobody wants to play with me. They run a-away and ca-call me a freak and a m-m-monster." She blabbered. "Daddy, why do they do it?"
Mephisto smirked at what Kiara called him, "Why do they run away?" He asked, watching as Kiara nodded, wiping the tears from her face.
"The kids here are scared of you, my dear."
"Scared? What's that?"
"How do I explain this? Well, it's what happens when something you really don't like happens, and you automatically want to fight it or run away from it."
"Does everyone have this feeling?"
"Of course. Fear is a very common emotion."
Kiara looked from him to the crowd of kids, "If everyone has that... then why don't I feel it?"
Kiara was pulled from her thoughts as the car she was in halted to a screeching stop, causing Kiara to lurch forwards. Looking outside, she could see that people were staring at the car she was in, though she didn't blame them, it wasn't everyday you saw a hot pink limo. To say she was embarrassed when it arrived to pick her up was an understatement. The kids at the orphanage crowded around it, and when they found out that Kiara was the one that the limo was for, they all started to whisper.
"I bet she's going to the asylum. Serves her right for a freak."
"Last time in a car before never seeing the light of day again. Have to make it enjoyable for the monster."
"She'll finally be gone. The orphanage is going to be a much better place without her here."
The phrases hurt but it hadn't been anything she wasn't used to. She was always alone at the orphanage and had been the scapegoat for anything bad that happened. If you asked her, she was glad to finally be out of there.
She stretched and looked at the building out the window. True Cross Academy. It wasn't her choice to attend this school, it was the decision of none other than Mephisto Pheles, the director of the famed academy. He thought she should attend his school due to her not being completely human. Being the child of a full demon and a half demon made her quite the threat in the eyes of the exorcists around the world— of course they would have to know of her existence for her to be considered dangerous. She also wanted to become an exorcist, which meant True Cross Academy was the best school for her to go to since they had their own Exorcist cram school.
"We're here—"
"Yeah yeah." Kiara interrupted, opening the door and stepping out, a book bag of her stuff in hand. After a quick thank you, Kiara shut the door to the car and walked across he court yard, forcing hr way through the scattered crowds of First Years.
Looking around she saw groups of First Years crowding around an older man who looked to be a tour guide. Kiara had been to this school many times before, so a tour guide would be wasted on her. Though in the group, someone caught her eye. A boy with blueish hair who was looking around with an awed expression on his face. It wasn't like she was attracted to him or anything— he wasn't her type at all. But there was something about him that made him... different than a normal human. She just couldn't put a finger on what it was exactly.
The boy looked at her and Kiara kept staring. Her golden eyes meeting his blue ones. It didn't take long before he was distracted by something else and looked away. With a sigh, Kiara headed inside the building. Mephisto wanted to talk with her once she had arrived.
Making her way through the halls, it didn't take too long to find her way. As she reached up to knock on the door, it flung wide open, and Kiara was met with a grinning Mephisto.
"Kiara, my dear! Come on in!" He exclaimed, stepping the the side. "I've been waiting for you!"
"Of course you have." Kiara muttered. "What did you want to talk about with me, dad?" She asked, realizing her mistake a little too late. Her face flushed slightly as she watched him smirk.
"Well sweetie, I wanted to talk about living arrangements for you, as well as give you a few things you'll be needing while at the academy."
"I already know where the girl's dorm is." Kiara said, only to be greeted by Mephisto raising his hand.
"No. I'm afraid you won't be staying in the girl's dorm. If any exorcists in training staying there found out about your little... secret... the Vatican would know and then the paperwork would come- oh the dreadful paperwork! It's best just to avoid all that. So, for your time at True Cross Academy you'll be staying in the old girl's dorm."
"Is anyone going to be staying with me?" She asked, tilting her head slightly, "or am I going to be all alone?"
"We can't have anyone with you. Being alone isn't going to scare you, is it?"
"I've never heard a funnier joke. So I'm going to be in an old dorm that practically falling apart how luxurious." She rolled her eyes, shoving her hands in her jacket pockets.
"Oh, don't worry, I wouldn't dare leave my darling daughter in a crumbling building. I took liberties to make the dorm more... modernized and comfortable for you to live in."
Kiara narrowed her eyes. "Thanks."
"Now, one more thing before you leave." Mephisto dug through his pocket and pulled a key ring out, three rings dangling on it. "The silver key is to your dorm. The golden one is to this wonderful academy, and this key," he lifted up a second golden key that was very simplistic compared to the other two, "is to the Cram school. You still do want to be an exorcist, correct?"
"Of course." Kiara said.
"Perfect! Now, I'm sure you want to get settled in and I have a few things that I need to get done before the school year officially starts." He handed her the key ring and gave her a wide grin, his unnaturally sharp canines glinting in the light of his office. "Oh, and that last key is to your dorm room. Room 207!"
"Right of course." Kiara said, heading to the door and grabbing the key that was said to lead to the dorm she was going to be staying in. She put it in the lock and turned it, though just before she opened the door, she turned around and looked at Mephisto darkly. "Also, I know where you hide your manga collection. Call me daughter one more time and I will make you regret it." With that she opened the door and walked through, taking her first steps in the dorm that she would be living in for the next three years.
***
Kiara walked around her dorm, scoping out the building she was going to be staying in for the time she was attending True Cross Academy. When Mesphisto had said he had modernized it, he wasn't wrong. He had installed heating and cooling systems, had the wiring of the entire building upgraded, added in a hang out room with a flat screen TV, some arcade games lined the back wall, couches, and a mini fridge.
The kitchen had been filled to the brim with fresh food, and on the counters there were a few jars of candy. After reaching up and opening one cabinet, Kiara also found out that Mephisto had filled them to the brim with her favorite types of Tea.
As much as she hated to admit it, the man knew her as well as any father would know their daughter.
She decided to head to her room to change into her uniform, there was an entrance ceremony in a few minutes that she had to attend. Her room was just like any other double dorm room, well, size wise at least. The second bed had been taken out as well as the second desk. Where the bed used to be there was now a small TV mounted into the wall and a small bookshelf of DVDs underneath it. On the desk that was still in the room, there was a small laptop. While she was glad Mephistopheles had done all this for her, Kiara had to admit that it was a bit... much. She would talk to him the next time she had the chance.
She grabbed her uniform and started to undress, relieved that she was able to wear the tie instead of the frilly bow that all the other first year girls were wearing. Unwrapping her tail from around her waist, she stretched it out, the feathered tip waving as she did so.
While Kiara looked mostly human, there were a few things that set her apart. Mainly, her tail. It was black and feathered out to a single feather at the tip. She normally kept it wrapped around her waste to hide it from the view of any exorcist that might happen to walk past. She also had the qualities that any demon human hybrid or more human demon would have, sharpened canines, pointed ears, and slightly slitted pupils. Nothing that would make someone give her a second glance. What separated her from most other half demons were what was scattered around her body, she had splotches of black feathers, they were tiny and looked more like the feathers a baby bird would have, there were more at the the base of her tail than anywhere else.
Glancing at the clock, Kiara quickly got dressed and headed out of the dorm and towards True Cross Academy. She had an opening ceremony to attend.