The day that that I have been dreading the most since my arrival in Lixerra has finally come. Time went by incredibly fast and before I knew it, it’s already the assembly day and the last day of freedom. I  woke up too early as usual and just laid on my bed in silence, staring blankly at the ceiling as different scenarios started to play in my mind: Would I fail? Would I succeed? Was coming here to Coleste the right thing to do? I’ve never given much thought about school since for the past two years my parents home schooled me, but now I’m in a different situation and I must admit that I’m still not ready for this change at all. I still couldn’t fathom it because it happened so fast for my mind to process it all at once, one minute you are a normal teenage girl with no social life, the next you’re a weak witch surrounded by hundreds of stronger, more accomplished witches. "MYSTICS!" Rose would whine whenever the word witches slipped out of my mouth. “We are Mystics, witches are mythical creatures created by mortals to explain all the evil in the world they can’t blame anyone else for.” I would roll my eyes at her explanation, because for me it’s the same thing, both can control natural elements and both can do no mortal ever dreamt of doing, so why the fancy name? I couldn’t use my power, which was already a terrible blow to my frail self confidence, let alone being surrounded by students who have spent most of their lives learning how to control and wield their abilities. And to add salt to injury I wasn’t doing well in my private lessons either. For the past few days I wasn’t able to summon my main element and Mr. Isaiah deserves a medal for being so patient with me so far and not giving up on me for being weak and useless. Well, I guess starting from tomorrow I’m doomed.

Light knocks on my door snapped me out of my deep thoughts and before I could answer, Rose peeked her head through the door. “You’re awake!” she exclaimed as she pushed the door open and came in. “Good morning!”

“Good morning.” I replied with a smile but not with same enthusiastic tone of hers.

“I came here to wake you up but since you’re up and ready, let’s go Kira’s made breakfast.” she grabbed my wrist and dragged me downstairs with her to the kitchen where the scent of coffee greeted me. Kira and her obsessions with coffee are beyond me.

“Wow dude, you look terrible!” Kira let out as she saw me.

“Good morning to you too.” I replied, rolling my eyes at my roommate. I have come to notice this past week that Kira and Rose were not that different after all. They both had a problem with holding their tongues. But I guess that could be a great quality as I can be sure they would never lie to me.

“Morning. Have you slept at all last night?” She brushed her blue hair back and handed me a cup of coffee.

“I did. A little.” I sipped on my sweet coffee and relaxed a little in my chair.

“What’s wrong?” Rose asked.

“Nothing major, I’m just stressed about school I guess.”

“Relax, everything will be okay.” She said as she rubbed my back. “Kira and I will be there for you, whatever you need.”

“We have all struggled with our magic at some point in our lives Lilith. You’ll get the hang of it soon, I promise.” Kira smiled at me, a rare warm smile as opposed to her usual smirks, scoffs and eye rolls, and I suddenly felt at ease. She slid me a plate of toast with jam and butter, already picking up on the fact that I don’t enjoy savory food in the morning except for the occasional omelet, and my stomach growled in response. I said my thank you and dug right it, and the girls soon joined in what seemed to be the quietest breakfast we’ve had together so far. I suppose I wasn’t the only one nervous about classes starting, just like me Rose and Kira were about to start their senior year, and no matter how good they were at pretending they were fine, this morning their nervousness was clear on their faces.

The sound of a phone ringing broke the silence and Kira reached into her pocket to retrieve her device. A small smile formed on her lips as she looked at the caller idea and her finger slid swiftly across the screen, answering the call with a cheerful ‘Hello, babe’.

I gave her a quizzical look -to which she responded by sticking out her tongue- but otherwise said nothing and waited for her to finish her call. Rose was busy stuffing her face in, quickly clearing out her plate of eggs and bacon, so I saw no point in asking her. A few minutes later Kira blew a kiss through the phone and hang up, happiness radiating off of her like a halo.

“So", I started, "I didn’t know you had a ‘babe’".

“It just didn’t come up.” She averted her eyes, staring at her plate instead.

“Was that Gabi?” Rose finally asked, walking around the counter to place her dish in the sink.

“Yes, she’s on her way to school now. She said she could make it to the ceremony after all.”

“Who’s Gabi?” I interrupted.

“My girlfriend.” Kira stated coolly.

“I guess there is a lot I still don’t know about you two!” I gave her a sly smile. “What about you Rose? Do you have a girlfriend? Or a boyfriend?”

“Neither. Romantic relationships don’t interest me at all.” Rose said as she brushed her long hair back.

“Alright then.” I giggled and took another bite of my strawberry jam toast.

After breakfast I waited for the girls to get ready. I was already dressed in a flower printed summer dress paired with white sneakers and matching accessories since the early morning. The girls marched downstairs -looking as breathtaking as ever- and we left the house, making our way towards the dormitory area that is reserved for the medium ranked students. Somehow I still couldn’t fathom the idea of this school dividing students into different living areas. I’ve learnt that the ones who belong to the royal line and wealthy families cohabit in the houses area while the others with low family profiles and backgrounds stay in the dormitory area. I don’t know if I should feel lucky that I somehow belong to the first category or feel bothered by it, like shouldn’t everyone be treated equally? We are on neutral ground aren’t we? What am I even talking about? There’s no such thing in the human world, let alone in here. Mystics take their ranks and position even more seriously, and apparently I’m not the only one bothered by this hierarchy. Kira made it very clear as we walked together that she loathed this system, mainly because her girlfriend Gabriella belongs in the medium rank. Kira and Rose were royalty- I almost chocked on my coffee when they announced it to me a few days ago- and just like humans, mystics frown upon royals mingling with ‘peasants’ as Kira put it.

We stopped in front of the dorms, waiting for Gabriella to arrive. The area was chaotic, to say the least. It was officially the first day of school - even though classes start tomorrow- and it seemed like Lixierra high was buzzing. Apparently, even though a lot of students come to school a week or so before classes start to get settled in, the majority prefer to show up on initiation day. And so we stood there as a whirlwind of mystics passed us by, bags in hand, suitcases dragging behind them as they greeted their friends and - very loudly- described their summer vacation. But with every new face walking by, one thing was definitely getting old. You guessed it, it seems that when it comes to me, everyone’s reaction was the same: shock, confusion, nudging, whispering and pointing.

“Kira!” A loud voice snapped my attention back to my friends and I saw a girl waving and walking towards us. She was a little shorter than me, with beautiful tanned skin, big bright brown eyes and wavy brown hair that went a little under her shoulders. She was wearing a bright red tank top and black shorts that accentuated her curvy figure, along with black sneakers and a golden ankle bracelet.

“Gabi!” Kira waved back, a bright smile gracing her face. She opened her arms as soon as the girl reached us and they hugged for a while, breaking off that warm embrace only to kiss like no one was watching.

“Alright we get it you’re in love. We have a ceremony to get you!” Rose let out after a couple of minutes, her smile contradicting her words and tone. Kira pulled back, glaring at Rose as Gabriella smiled sheepishly. I cleared my throat, feeling awkward and out of place. What else is new?

“Hey Rose, I miss