The Aldean Chronicles: Hidden

The next day, we're at the administrative building waiting for our passes. Students have to get one from director Lilian's office to leave school. Her assistant takes down our names and begins to fill out the forms.

When she reaches mine, she pauses and says there's a problem. "I don't understand," I say. "What's wrong?"

She clears her throat. "Your citizenship ID is not valid. You don't seem to be from any Illyrian country." She says quickly. "I can't let you out of the safety of this school. I wouldn't want anyone harassing you on the street." Is she being serious? "But the rest of you are free to go." She hands them their passes.

"Are you sure there's nothing you can do about it?" Axel asks.

She nods. "I'm very sure, maybe she can leave when the issue is resolved. Till then, please leave my desk, I have a lot of work to do." She wrinkles her freckle-filled nose and shushes us away.

"This isn't fair," Michelle complains as we leave the room. "They can't just detain you here."

"It's alright, you guys go on without me. I'll stay here and finish my homework." I say.

"But we were all supposed to go. It won't be the same without you." Jason protests.

"I'll be fine, enjoy your day. You can video chat me when you get there. Seriously, I'll be fine."

After much persuasion, they leave me alone in the building. As soon as they're gone, I march back in and face Lilian's assistant, Cyan.

"Excuse me, Miss. Is director Lillian in at the moment?" I ask her.

"Yes, but she isn't currently seeing any visitors."

"I see." I sigh.

I race towards Lilian's door and knock once before opening it.

"Who is..." She stops when she sees me. "It's you, how dare you barge into my office like that?"

"Why are you trying to ruin my life?" I question. "You could have at least come up with something better than citizenship ID."

Cyan comes running into the office. "I'm sorry, Lilian. I tried to stop her but she was so fast." Lillian just rolls her eyes and waves her hand. The door slams shut in her poor assistant's face.

"Yes, Cassandra, I made that up." She's not even denying it. "Because whether people know or not, you are a Princess. We wouldn't want anyone using incriminating pictures to blackmail you in the future. Every single one of your actions will reflect on this family. And we have done far too much to watch you muck the Harrington name in the mud. It's bad enough that your magic is average at best."

I don't know what to say. I can't enjoy myself no matter what. "So what do you want me to do? I can't spend my weekends like Kat or Grey, going home and attending functions. And I can't go out with my friends?"

She smiles. "Exactly, now you're getting it. Is there anything else you need? I need to get back to my work so I can go home."

I bite my lip to keep from screaming. "No, that’s all." It comes out choked.

Lillian notices this and bends her head back. When she sits up, her straight black hair falls sleekly back in place. "Fine, in a few weeks, I will grant you permission to go back to earth to see your parents. How does that sound?"

"It's, whatever." I'm not sure if she can even do that. "Have a nice weekend, Lillian." I turn to leave.

"It's director Lillian." She adds, flicking her wrist to open the door for me. "Perhaps you can use this time to catch up on your schoolwork."

I don't reply, I just walk to my room.

Sara video chats me when she gets to Terri center. It seems so nice, like a mall back home. They go to different stores, a cafe and an arcade. I see the simulator they're talking about, it's a row of machines on the third floor. They all have seats and glasses that create a virtual world where you can practice your magic without restrictions. The one for combatants is different. Their machine is different and comes with an ivory stick to use as a simulated weapon.

I dock out of the call, it's making me too sad. I get a text later from Kat asking how my afternoon was.

Me: Terrible, Lilian wouldn't let me leave because I might embarrass myself and it will haunt me when people find out I'm a princess.

Kat: Sorry about that. Still, I'll take relaxing than having to meet my mother. She called and asked me to come home.

Me: Good luck, if you need me, I'll be seating alone in my room, hating my life.

Kat: That's funny.

I pick up my phone from back home and check my messages. I see one from my friends, they sent it four days ago. I apologize for replying late. They respond a minute later saying it's alright, I doubt they even care. Is this how friends start drifting apart?

I call my parents next and tell them about my week. "It's nice to hear you're having a better time, sweetheart." My dad says. "If you need anything or if being there is too much for you, let me know."

"I will Dad, is mom there?" I stare into the phone screen.

"She's upstairs sleeping. It's 3 am here." I'm eleven hours ahead of them. We usually talk when it's night here and morning there.

"Sorry, I'll call later. Bye dad, love you." I cut the call. And now I am officially bored. I catch up on my reading, focusing on History. I get hungry and decide to get something from the vending machine. The problem is, one, I don't know any of the snacks there and two, I don't have any money. Part of me is glad I didn't go, then I'll have to spend Sebastian's money.

I wait till dinner and get some food to take back to my room. My friends head there when they get back. Except Axel and Jason, our floor supervisor patrols the houses in the evening. They'll get in trouble for being in the girl's hostels.

"Jason got you this," Sara says, handing me a tiny, shiny, silver bag. "He asked me to give it to you."

I take the bag and ruffle through it, the paper crinkles noisily. I smile when I see what's inside, it's a mini atlas for Aldean. "This is so sweet," I say, flipping through the book. The book has pages dedicated to special places in the country. I pause at the page with the royal palace. It's such a beautiful building.

"Jason fancies you," Paisley says out of the blue.

"What?” I laugh. "Where did that even come from?"

"He only came today because of you. And he asked about you the whole time." She insists.

"He also asked if anything was going on with you and Tristan," Michelle adds. I stifle a cough. "We told him we don't know cause well, we don't. Is there?"

"I've only been here two weeks. How are you already thinking up relationships for me." I say. "I'm just trying to get through first semester, I do not need boys right now."

"I know but how were things with Tristan this morning?" Paisley doesn't give up.

I think back to that morning. "They were normal, I got there early and we practiced for an hour and a half. That's it." And I'm not lying, Tristan was his usual self this morning. We trained, he walked the fine line between strict and playful and the lesson went well. I don't think he sees me as more than the project given to him by Sebastian, a high-ranking member of society. Tristan probably wants to get in his good graces.

"They were normal and that's all it's going to be," I say. "Same with Jason, I doubt he's interested. He was probably just being nice."

"I don't think that's it. He asked for your number, don't worry, I didn't give it to him. I'll never do that without asking you first." Michelle says to me.

I sigh and drop the book beside me. "Can I see the stuff you bought?"

"I got one shirt, tuition drained my parent's accounts," Michelle says, showing me her shirt.

"Scholarship." Sara smiles. "I would have never been able to afford this place. All the money I have goes to my savings, in case the school decides to screw me and start making me pay."

"My parents paid with money from my trust. They always knew I was coming here so they started saving in advance." Paisley says. "Also I'm an only child." She looks at me. "What about you Cassie?"

I think about that. Did Sebastian pay for me or did he ask Lilian to give me a scholarship? "I paid," I sound unsure. "Yes, I definitely paid."

"Did you have to think about that?" Sara asks.

"I paid but it wasn't my parents that paid for me. It's not a scholarship but feels like one." I'm lucky, I didn't have to worry about entering this school or even paying for it.

"You need to see this skirt I got," Paisley pulls out a pretty, brown, plaid skirt from one of her bags.

"Princess Katya is going to murder you." Sara jokes. "Plaid is her thing."

Plaid is her thing, thirty percent of her outfits are plaid. It sounds like a terrible fashion choice but she makes it work. She has plaid skirts, dresses, pinafores, jackets, all in different colors. And she pairs everything off with designer shoes. I need to know that girl's wardrobe budget.

"Well, she's going to have to learn to share," Paisley says, waving the wool skirt around.

She shows us the rest of her clothes, they're all nice. "It's a shame you couldn't come with us." She folds the clothes and puts them back in her bags.

"Yes, my citizenship ID. I talked to director Lillian and she said it might take some time to sort out the issue. I won't be leaving school for a few weeks."

"That's so sad, as soon as you get everything sorted out, we'll take you around the city." Sara offers.

"That's if Jason doesn't beat us to it," Paisley says suggestively. I ignore her completely. They eventually leave my room and I get a text from Jason asking if I liked my gift. I think of a way to say I loved it without sounding too enthusiastic. I settle on 'Nice, thanks' and put my phone on silent.

***

Monday morning, we're seated in the main hall for a special assembly. No one knows why, well I do. Kat texted me yesterday saying her dad was coming back to the Capitol after being away for months. Queen Freya said it will be good publicity if during his visit, he came to speak to the students.

"I have good news," Lilian says happily, the students perk up because she never looks this excited during assemblies. "A very special alumni will be coming to our school next Monday." She pauses for dramatic effect. "Consort Maxon will be coming to Brimstone to speak to our combatants."

I hear Paisley gasp. "Pinch me, let me know if I'm dreaming."

Axel blows air in her face, he uses magic so it comes out stronger. "Be careful, you know we're not allowed to use our magic outside class. You'll get in trouble." Sara warns him.

"Relax, nobody even saw me." Axel defends. Paisley and Michelle shush the two of them so they can hear Lilian.

We all focus our attention back on her. "He will be coming to our school on Wednesday and Thursday. Also, I have taken the liberty to organize a tournament." Of course, she has. "Your instructors will be picking four people from each class to compete in our stadium. The competitors will perform in front of not just the whole school but Consort Maxon himself." The room is buzzing with conversations from the students. "Quite down and hear all the announcements. The competition will take place Saturday, all students are welcome to attend. Although only combatants will attend the first two functions. It will take place during your usual training time in the morning."

She drones on about how she expects us to behave while having a visitor of such high social standing. After the meeting, we all head to class. I hear some of my classmates complaining about how they want a tournament. They're all so sure they can beat the other, I wish I was that confident.

"Hardest to beat, maybe Derek, easiest…" I hear a group of them giggling. I turn back and they're looking at me. That makes me very angry, these people are never going to stop seeing me as weak. My magic is getting better, I've just not had the chance to showcase it.

"Alright class, we've lost enough time with that unnecessarily long assembly." Professor Harding says when he enters the classroom. "Let's not waste anymore, I'm sure you all practiced what I showed you over the weekend. Who would like to go first?"

Everybody's hands shoot up, for the first time since school started, my hand is also up. Professor Harding uses his eyes to survey the room and stops at me. "Cassandra Flores." He asks. "I never thought I'd see the day. Why not, get up here and show us the routine."

"And try not to be too startled by the flames." A girl in the second row says. I walk down the steps to the middle of the class. The challenge is made up of three different circles varying in size. The task is to direct fire through them and make sure it doesn't touch the metal. A single piece of cotton wool is placed a meter from the smallest circle.

Tristan told me the trick is to keep the fire at a low level. I stretch my right hand forward and flames start coming out. I keep it low and concentrate as hard as I can, the flames start to go up towards the metal, I maintain my composure. It passes through the second ring and I mentally high-five myself. Now for the hardest part, the third ring.

I lower my fire and make it through the end. I pass it and light the cotton wool, I remember the last tip Tristan gave me. He said lighting the wool doesn't mean you've passed. That I still have to stop the flame from touching the metal. I use my other hand to make the fire disappear and turn to professor Harding. I did it.

Professor Harding hums. "That wasn't bad." He seems surprised. "Next person."

That's it? If I fail, he taunts me for an hour and when I pass, he just says 'not bad.' I take a deep breath and go to my seat.

As the class goes on, only three of my classmates are able to do the task. I'm elated, who didn't fail? Me.