Hello !

I SIMPLY CANNOT WAIT ANOTHER 3 MONTHS FOR CRIMSON PEAK.

THIS TOOK FOREVER DEAR HEAVEN ME WOWSAH.

So you'll meet some students today... three of them are you guys! They were picked completely randomly. The three who were mentioned are RoseannaGrace, LeAnnaBosch, and thatmarvelousgirl 

I'm trying to get as many in as possible, and if I can't get them all I'M SORRY I LOVE YOU ALL. 

I also make a cameo ;) I feel like Stan Lee. And the girl I'm with is modeled after one of my best friends, Logan. She's awesome. HI LOGAN, HI WALDORF, HI FEESH 1! (sorry guys)

Just a note: if y'all are referring to a specific passage in the chapter, I can't see what you're talking about, so if you want me to know, then give me a hint as to what it is! :) Ily! 

Chapter Seven

I feel a little balloon inside me deflate as Max, Videl, and Angelique leave the dorm room. I guess I really am on my own.

"How about we go to the Corner?" asks Dara, sitting up on her bed. "It's this tiny little cafe thing about a ten minute walk from here. I know all the shortcuts around here, Paladin went to Umber for four years."

I'm not really hungry, but I agree. I make sure I have my Umber key card (which has a truly terrible picture of me), and then feel my thigh to reassure myself with the long shape hidden inside.

"Is that your dagger?" asks Dara curiously. She's grabbed her blue fringe purse that hangs down to her waist, and is letting her hair down from her ponytail. I thought I'd had thick hair, but her cords look almost painful to pull out. "Not to pry. But when your roommate is allowed to have a weapon, I get to know."

"Yeah," I say. I pull back my shirt and show her the indentions of stitching along my jeans that are on every one of my pants. I reach down and pull up the emerald hilt and show it to her, "Natasha helped me sew all these in the spring."

"Natasha Romanoff?" Dara looks almost more interested in that than she's interested in the dagger. "You know her?!"

"Uh, yeah," I say as I sheath the dagger, "Pretty well, actually."

"She's like my idol," gushes Dara, "She's perfect."

"She's pretty awesome," I agree, "She and Clint taught me how to fight. And Steve too, I guess. And Loki. Lots of people."

Dara stares at me without blinking. Then, she says in an adoring whisper, "You know Clint Barton?"

"Yes...?" This is becoming amusing. "He's also the uncle of the guy I will be trying to avoid in public."

"Girl, sit down," says Dara firmly, pulling me down on my bed. "We need to have a conversation before we go. First, about this demonic boy. And second, about-"

"The Avengers?" I smile.

"You're telling me that you know Captain America? My dad adores him almost as much as Phil Coulson, but he's never met him and he's a Level 8 agent!"

"Steve's great," I say, holding back a cheeky grin that probably looks a lot like Videl's, minus the fangs.

"And you know Loki?" Dara theatrically shivers, "That must be scary. Didn't he get sent back to Asgard 'cause he sort of killed his dad?"

"Yeah," I say quietly, looking at my hands and the emerald hilt that's sticking out of my jeans. "That's him."

"Are you okay?" asks Dara quickly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

I look up at her, "Loki's my dad."

Dara's mouth drops open, and she immediately looks apologetic, "Oh Lord, I'm so sorry, I didn't know! I mean I knew that you were Asgardian, but not... God, I might kick myself."
"It's okay," I say honestly, because Dara seems genuine. "I just miss him." I hold up my left wrist, "But this bracelet lets me send letters to him magically. That makes it a little better."

"When's the last time you've seen him?" asks Dara. She's skipping over the part that I can do magic. At least I'm not a circus animal yet.

"The first week of January," I say.

"That's terrible," says Dara, shaking her head, "If I didn't see Daddy for six months, I'd be a mess."

"I am a mess," I say, glancing out the window.

"Psh girl, nah, no you're not. Your life might be a mess, but you're not a mess. Your the best part of your life." She pauses, "I just went all Ghandi on you. So. About this boy. What's his name and how do I make him suffer?"

I smile, "His name's Jack Barton. He's a Volare."

"Oh gag me, a brilliant bird boy. What happened between you? Not to pry."

I've realized in an hour that Dara is one of those people who likes to know what's going on with everyone, but is polite and unobtrusive about it.

"Well," I say, thinking back. "Jack and I met when I just turned thirteen. That was right after my mom died in the explosion. He was at the Nest."

"Wait, sorry, the one in Brazil? My auntie was there last summer."

"Yeah. By the way, Brazil is really humid even in December. But he became my first real friend, and I guess we just got closer. Last fall Kyle- that's Max's brother- told me that he was going to ask me out. But then...stuff happened that I'm not actually allowed to disclose. And then, I got turned immortal."

"You weren't already?" asks Dara. "I thought you were Asgardian."

"Technically, I'm half Asgardian," I say, "My mom was human. But half-Asgardians can become immortal, and then technically full Asgardian by taking a potion. And I did, well I was sort of forced to take it last fall." I try not to shudder at the memory.

"I'm sorry," says Dara, putting her hand on my arm.

I shrug, "I was separated from most everyone I knew for almost three months. It was just Videl, Angelique, and me. After a lot of crazy stuff happened, and I mean crazy, I finally got to see Jack again. And he kissed me."

Dara makes a sound like a baby dolphin, but politely refrains from commenting.

"I guess he found out I was immortal at that point," I say, trying not to remember the hurt and anger in Jack's voice when we had argued that day in Stark Tower, "We fought, and then he said he wish he hasn't kissed me. And you know, avoided me until he went to Volare camp."

Dara looks indignant, "It's not your fault you're immortal! Whose fault was it anyway?"

"Uh, it's complicated," I say, not wanting to get into Neidra and what she did to Loki. I continue quickly, wanting to finish this up, "Anyway, the last time I saw him was Kyle's wedding. He brought his girlfriend with him"

"Girl, he did what?" squawks Dara.

I shrug. "MaryAnne goes here too."

"Well do you have a picture of him?" asks Dara.

"Why?" I ask, frowning a little.

"So I know what he looks like so I can be sure to warn you of course," says Dara as if this were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I deleted all them off my phone, but I've got a couple down here," I say, climbing off the bed and bending down next to the tiny shelf under the nightstand. I take out my box of photos and rifle through them, saying, "I don't even know if they're here."

"It's fine if you don't," says Dara.

"Here," I pull out a photo of Jack and Clint when we were at the mall more than a year ago. "He's taller now. And you know, has wings."

Dara inspects the picture with narrowed eyes and then looks back up at me, "Do you still like him?"

I slump my shoulders a little, "I sure wish I didn't."

*

We walk to the Corner, chatting about upcoming classes, and me also trying not to think about running into Jack. Dara is in the math level above me, which is great for me because she can help me out, but we're enrolled in the same other regular classes. She's also in my Division II Simulations class.

The Corner is, actually, on a Corner. It's small, like Dara had said, with small iron tables with green and gold umbrellas outside. There's a bit of a line inside, which trails out and around like about a dozen confusing snakes.

"Uh," says Dara, "Now what?"

"You're the expert," I say.

"Hey, Videl already sassed me, don't you go at it too," says Dara staunchly, with a smile.

"Hey, the line starts around the back, near that big ass tree," says a girl's voice. We turn around to see two older girls. The one who spoke is tall, with a heart shaped face, a small nose, and light hazel eyes. She has a mane of thick brown-black hair with a hot pink streak through it, and she's wearing a shirt with a headphone symbol on it. The other is shorter, with medium dark brown hair and extremely black eyes, a sharp nose, and high cheek bones, and she's wearing a bright red tank top and shorts. They're both carrying bowls of frozen yogurt.

"I'm Hayley," says the first one. She has a clear, good-natured voice. "This is Aspen. We're seniors. You guys are freshman aren't you?"

"That obvious?" asks Dara. Thank goodness so far it's a relationship where she is cheerful and talkative and I'm silent and judgemental.

"Well, you look ever so slightly lost," says Aspen with a bright smile. She has earbuds hanging around her neck, and she's got an athletic build, telling me that she's probably a pretty good fighter. "Don't worry, you'll get lost some more before the end of the week. It's all part of high school, much less a high school like this. What're your names?"

"I'm Dara," says Dara, "This is my roommate, Thea."

I offer them a small smile.

"Hey, Aspen and I are roomies too," says Hayley. "We went to high school together and kinda just moved up here together too."

"If you need anything, attempt to find us on this heck of a campus," says Aspen, taking a bite of her yogurt, which is piled with chocolate. She and Hayley walk away, talking and sidestepping a bunch of boys.

"Well they seemed nice," says Dara, "Not stuck up cause they're seniors, hey look, that line's getting shorter."

We snag a spot in the line in front of the huge tree Hayley had mentioned. Two minutes later, we're bumped by two girls behind us. One has flaming wavy hair, a strikingly beautiful face with a pointed chin and clear green eyes, and the other has long blonde ringlets and an extremely upturned nose that somehow makes her look even more attractive.

"Excuse me," says Dara, barring her arm so that the girls are forced to stop cutting in front of us, "We were in line first."

"Senior skip, freshies," says the redhead smoothly. The blonde girl arches an eyebrow royally.

"You're not seniors," I say, interrupting whatever Dara had been going to say.

"Who says, Sherlock?"

"Your key cards have a red stripe on them. Red is for sophomores." I raise my eyebrow right back at the blonde girl.

"That's beside the point," says the redhead, "Let us through."

"You can go to the back of the line just like everyone else."

"I don't think you understand," she says sweetly, "I'm Esmeralda Lanchester. My father is Rory Lanchester, and he's the head of the Tactical Ops division in SHIELD. I think I'm important enough to let through."

"Oh cool," I say, "I'm Thea Marahn. My father is Loki, and he's the heir to the throne of Asgard, which also makes me the heir to the throne of Asgard."

The blonde girl's eyebrows shoot up even higher.

Esmeralda Lanchester doesn't seem to care as much. "You're Thea? My father said you came to SHIELD as crazy as a wild animal."

"I've gotten crazier, don't worry," I say, inspecting my chipped fingernails.

"I don't care who you are, let me and Fantine through," says Esmeralda.

"Wasn't Fantine the prostitute in Les Miserables?" I ask.

"Wasn't Theodora a prostitute too?" fires back Fantine. She has a British accent, not the soft lilting kind like Jack, but the kind that makes her seem ten times snootier.

"At least she died as an empress and not a prostitute," I say.

"I find this all very fascinating," says Esmeralda sarcastically, "But Fantine and I need to get back to our actually interesting lives, so if you'd please just move."

"No, I'm not moving," I say.

"Nope," says Dara.

"What are you going to do about it, then?" asks Esmeralda.

I hold my fingers up so she can see them– and the flames dancing on their tips.

"You're not allowed to do your magic here," says Fantine.

"I actually am, as long as I don't threaten anyone," I say, "And I'm not threatening you. I'm practicing. But if you step too near me, I'm afraid it might catch onto your hair, which I think is fiery enough already."

Fantine's nostrils flare, and Esmeralda glares, then snaps, "At least my father's not a cold-blooded murderer and not locked up for the rest of his life."

I lunge for her, but Dara grabs my arms, which is probably a very wise decision because I'm currently trying to imagine how great it would be to tear off Esmeralda's limbs one by one.

"Bloody hell, what's going on here?" asks Jack.

Things just couldn't get any worse, could they? Oh wait.

Jack and MaryAnne walk up to us, each with a plate of fruit. MaryAnne looks pretty. Jack looks annoying.

"Mayday," whispers Dara.

"Thanks for that," I whisper back.

"And you are?" asks Esmeralda.

"Jack Barton, this is my girlfriend MaryAnne. What's going on?"

"Esmeralda insulted Thea and her father," says Dara.

"Dara!" I hiss.

"And then the witch threatened us," says Fantine.

"She didn't threaten," snaps Dara, who is still holding onto me.

Jack's eyes settle with understanding, and he looks at me for a couple seconds. I stare him down, determined not to give any emotion away.

"Thea," says Jack, "You're not supposed to use your magic, remember?"

He's saying it like I'm a toddler. Before I can stop my temper from giving him satisfaction, I jerk my hand to the side and one of his rings of pineapple fly up and smack him in the eye.

Jack curses and manages to get the pineapple, but the juice is still dripping down his face, and probably burning his eyes.

"Good aim," says Dara.

"Oh come on," says MaryAnne, "Look at his cheek!"

"Well dear me, God save the Queen!" says Dara in a terrible British accent.

I want to hug her.

"Let's go, Thea," says Dara, "We can get something to eat in the common room, or Sue'll give us something. These jerks can do whatever they want."

"Good plan," I say, stalking past Jack and purposefully ramming his shoulder at the same time.

"See you later, your majesty," says Esmeralda snidely. I pretend not to hear her and pretend that this doesn't hurt my feelings.

*

The commons is a huge room with two large televisions complete with a wall full of DVDs and games, fuzzy carpet, and large cushy chairs and couches. There's also a full kitchen at the back, which is where Thea and Dara raid the refrigerator for ice cream. Six o'clock rolls around, and soon enough, the room is filled with freshman girls, music is blaring, and Sue is trying to get by with five large boxes of pizza.

"All right, ladies," says Sue cheerfully, signaling the music to turn down, "Who's ready for a great year?"

There is a collection of cheers from most of the girls. Thea is not one of them.

"There are only thirty-six of you, so we should get to know each other pretty well over the years," continues Sue, "When I call your name, I want you to just say where you're from, what class you're looking forward to most, and something interesting about yourself. I'll hand out your schedule after that."

Thea groans inwardly. She hates doing this. When Sue calls her name soon after- her legal name is still Fossil-she stands up hesitantly.

"Uh," I say brilliantly, looking at the seventy-two eyes all blinking up in her direction. She glances down at Dara, who smiles encouragingly at her. "I'm from New York. I guess I'm looking forward to the Fighting class. And...uh...I'm Asgardian?"

There's an immediate whispering that spreads throughout the room.

"We're the cool group, we get the princess," smiles Sue, and although Thea knows she means it kindly, she looks down at the ground anyway. "Here's your schedule, Thea."

Thea crosses the room, grabs the piece of paper, and retreats back to Dara as quickly as possible. While a girl with brown hair and glasses introduces herself is introduced as Sadie Hannam, Thea looks at her schedule for the semester.

A- Physics–room 505– Mr. Martin

B- World History- room 606–Mr. Jaze

C- Spanish I – room 440– Ms. Clarkson

Lunch/break

1- Division I Weapons– room 2A– Ms. Mazeman

2- Division III Fighting- room 6C– Mr. Taylor

3- Division II Simulations– room 3B– Mr. Petrarch

"Hey, I'm in Ms. Mazeman's Div 1 too," says a girl who's sprawled out on the couch behind Thea. She's a cute brunette who somehow reminds Thea of an anime character, with bright green eyes. "I'm Rosie, by the way, I can't remember everyone's names."

"Nice to meet you," mutters Thea.

"And I'm Luna. Luna Reeds," says a second girl, a tall one with dark brown hair and blue eyes as she down next to Rosie. She peers over Thea's shoulder, "I think I'm in your Spanish class. I have a weird loving for languages. Ooh cool, we're also in physics."

Thea nods, and is saved from having to reply by her phone vibrating.

From: Kyle

hey, what happened to you calling me, missy?

From: Thea

I'm in a meeting right now, I'll call you later.

She puts the phone back in her pocket just as Dara jumps onto a cushion next to her. "Whadtcha get?" she asks.

Thea shows her the schedule, and Dara's dark eyes move from side to side as she compares the two pieces of paper.

"We hit the gold mine," says Dara, "We've got physics, history, and Div II Simulations together."

"I'm just thankful we don't have math until next semester," says Thea. "Provided we make it to second semester."

*

Thea calls Kyle after she's showered and is sitting criss-crossed on her bed, and while Dara takes her turn in the shower.

"Who's trying out for American Idol?" asks Kyle as the lyrics to "Drunk in Love" come pouring through the bathroom door over the roar of the showerhead.

"That's Dara," says Thea, "I think she likes Beyonce."

"And who doesn't?" retorts Kyle.

"I don't," says Thea.

"Something is wrong with you, girl."

"Yeah, I know that," she says.

"How was the first day, miss high schooler?"

"It was good," says Thea, fiddling with her fingers and deciding not to mention Esmeralda, Fantine, or Jack. Or the heat rushing to her cheeks in the common room surrounded by all the girls. "I got my schedule."

"How's it look?"

"Like a schedule."

Kyle chuckles, and then says, "What's up with you, you sound beat."

"I guess I'm just tired," says Thea, starting off with a fake yawn that turns into a real one. She looks at the clock. It's 10:35. "It's been a long day."

"I bet it has."

"How's the beach?"

"The beach is wonderful," says Kyle. "I don't want to come home on Wednesday and have to deal with Clint's early morning coffee runs instead of spending my day surfing."

"Don't blame you," says Thea, and then says with a touch of bitterness, "I'd rather be riding Stjarna in Asgard than getting ready for high school, but we can't have everything."

"You're still pretty sore about the whole Asgard thing, aren't you?"

"Just a tad."

"Everything'll work out, Thea, you'll see. I know things are tough for you right now, but just keep your chin up, missy."

"Anything on Neidra?" asks Thea, tracing her fingers on her bed.

"I've been in Cancun. Not really SHIELD central."

"So nothing really important then?"

"Not as far as I can tell," says Kyle, "Look, I know you're tired and I don't want to keep you up, but remember to stay positive. Text me tomorrow before class, but I'll probably be sleeping."

"I could text you during class," she points out.

"No, ma'am, you won't be, or you'll be coming straight home," teases Kyle. "Have a good night, missy."

"'Night Kyle," Thea mutters, and hangs up. She falls back on her bed with a grunt and looks at the glittering decals.

Dara appears from the bathroom with her hair in soggy cords. She promptly jumps on her bed and throws the covers over her head. "Good night, Thea! Did you set your alarm, I'm really bad at getting up on time."

"My phone's set," Thea replies, continuing to stare at the ceiling.

"All right. Night, then."

Dara's asleep and snoring softly in minutes, but Thea is still halfway covered up, her eyes still wide open, her hand still on her phone.

This is the first night Thea hasn't been with any of the Avengers, the Calen brothers, Loki, or anyone from her makeshift family since the night the Imeldi attacked her apartment almost two years ago.

She bites her lower lip, her eyes jerking in the direction of the unfamiliar sounds of the night around her. She shifts back and forth on the mattress, sometimes lying on her back, sometimes on her left side, sometimes on her right, sometimes on her stomach, always making sure her dagger is hidden under her pillow. She keeps getting images of Neidra appearing in her room with the twisted knife that had killed Lifolas, ready to kill her in her sleep. There is no Klaka here to bark a warning, or Natasha to grab her gun, or Loki to sing away her imaginative worries. Klaka is no doubt pacing in the apartment in New York, Natasha is away on a mission in British Columbia, and Loki is still in prison.

At ten minutes to midnight, tears are steadily dripping down Thea's cheeks. She sniffs and wipes her nose. As she does this, her fingers trace against the scar on the left side of her face, and she feels its edges with gentle slowness.

At first, Thea thinks that the tapping at the window is just leaves, but after it persists for a couple minutes, a tremor of fear runs through her before she hears soft hooting.

She sits up and looks over her headboard, to the window. A ghostly shape is sitting on a thick branch right outside the pane.

Hoping the windows don't trigger an alarm, Thea unhooks the latch and slides the sash upwards. Warm summer air drifts into the room, as does the white owl.

"Wairua?" whispers Thea as the large bird alights on the headboard. "What are you doing here?"

Wairua hoots softly again, and drops a piece of paper on her lap. Thea unfolds the paper. "Sleeping Lessons" by the Shins. Get comfy, and get some sleep, idiot. Wairua and I are always watching. You're safe. -Videl PS: Look down

Thea looks back over the headboard and down into the darkness. She can see the Circle from here, lit by dim glow of lights. The fountain is turned off. She squints, trying to see anything unusual.

And then she sees it. The lanky shape leaning against the light post nearest the dormitory building. An indistinguishable shape except for its mess of golden curls that are lit up like a halo.

Thea can't help but smile, and watches as Wairua flies back out the window. She closes the sash back with a thump and then grabs her earbuds from the nightstand and plugs them into her phone. She looks up "Sleeping Lessons" by the Shins and as the first notes trickle into her ears, she takes a deep breath and sinks down onto the pillow.

She falls asleep less than half an hour later, comforted by the peaceful music, but most of all by the knowledge of the nighttime shadow down below her with his amber eyes always open.

Sometimes, I wish Videl were a real person. And I just can't help but get this image that Dara is like a golden retriever when it comes to new people, and Thea's like Grumpy cat... SORRY.

What'd you think? Please VOTE and COMMENT! 

xxSierraxx