Awakened

Chapter 9

The Awakening Ceremony. It was the initiation to this Academy which we all had been waiting for this time and I was wary of the entire thing because something seemed shady about it. I had asked Bellamy countless times about what happened in the Ceremony but as soon as she opened her mouth to speak no sound came out. Not even a word about the initiation which means she was spelled to keep silent about the whole thing.

But one thing I had heard Whitmore speaking to Bellamy that she needed to be initiated once again this year because they felt that all her powers had not been fully activated yet. Even though she could not understand what he was telling her completely she seemed to be excited by the prospect as well.

Huh! Go figure!!

I smoothed my dress and put on my knee high fur lined boots. There was no point in putting any kind of make-up but Freddie insisted that even for throwing up in front of all those people it was necessary that we all be at our best. So he pulled my hair up in a pony tail and then tied it up with a strand of my hair it was a cool and neat trick and I promised to myself that I was going to learn it as soon as possible. There were a lot of things at the back of my mind but I still did not forget to take Nightshade with me. She hung on my hips with the make-shift golden belt that I had borrowed from Freddie. He said that it made my dress stand out.

I looked at my reflection in the mirror and realized that I was not the same girl who had come to the Academy and after this evening I was not going to be the same.

Finally when all was done and we were all ready all of us went down to the Great Hall where the ceremony was supposed to take place. It was almost of the size of the Hogwarts Great Hall, I mean as far as I could remember in the movies. Not magicked sky or anything of the sort but size wise it was almost close to that. There were fires lit at almost all the corners to give it a regal and aristrocatic look to the old stone hall. And it also kept the cold at bay. Now that it was evening the chill was gradually growing in your bones.

We were ushered into a room and the boys and girls were separated in two sides of the stage. It was kind of like the back end make-shift green room. Only that we would have to wait till our names were called.

There were about sixteen girls in this particular class and nineteen boys who were on the other side of the stage. When Freddie was taken away from our group he looked at us with such a glance that he was absolutely miffed that he had to be with the boys even for a short period of time.

“I cannot believe that my brother is such a p***y,” said Andrea as she rolled her eyes and we sat in the couches waiting for our names to be called.

“Well you have more than enough balls for the both of you, so it does not even matter if he has them or not,” said Melanie and we all smirked and snorted at her comment. It was true to some extent for Andrea and then my eyes fell on Bitchy Barbie who was looking positively enraged that we were all here and that too hale and hearty without anything to create any kind of problems for us.

“So I heard that they let you stay huh?” asked Taylor as her eyes were on me and the hair on my arms rose in an instant and I could feel that Nightshade was pulsing on my hip. I smiled at her and showed my teeth and said,” What can you say BB? After they let you stay, I guess this entire place has gone to down to the wolves, isn’t that right?”

“You freaking b***h!!!” shouted Taylor as she stood up and I calmly gazed at her.

“You don’t have testosterones in your body, and this is no pissing contest so zip it up because if I begin raining blows on you, and I mean that literally, your head will be rolling on the ground,” I said and she glared at me like I was dead meat but then the name calling started and we did not have to take this any further. But I knew that this was far from over and this girl had blown us and kicked us at the time when we were at our worst and I did not take this lightly in my life. She was going to pay for what she had done.

We were all standing at the curtains watching the proceedings when the names were being called out. Taylor was the first one to be called out and that did not make sense because alphabetically I should have been the first but Melanie said that it was on the basis of who had come to the Academy when.

That meant that I was going to be the last.

This was getting worse and worse with every single second. Whitmore was standing in the stage in a row with all the other teachers while Headmaster Motley stood in the front wearing a black robe and a hat on his head. It was kind of like a turban which looked a little out of place but then I watched as Taylor walked on stage and stood before Headmaster Motley who took a chalice and offered it to her. She did not say a word and then drank it bottoms up.

I just hoped that this was not like a horror movie and something bad happened after that. But then she screamed and all my fears came true at the moment. That unholy shriek that emitted her lips was before she threw up on the floor and then panted on as she fell to her knees and when she rose up her eyes were red, and not like the one which happens after crying. Her eyeballs were red and fangs came out from her upper gums and she hissed menacingly at Headmaster Motley.

“Vampire. Some one please see that she receives the nourishment she requires,” he said as she was pulled away amongst hisses and grunts. It was a disgusting sight.

“I hope that I can fare better than that,” said Andrea since we both knew that she was going along the same lines but not for once I knew that Taylor was going to be a vampire which meant that she was going to have super speed and super strength now. I needed to be on my guard more than necessary. The next boy came forward and he stood before Headmaster Motley and the same process was repeated.

But this time he did not throw up. Rather he watched in fascination as fur came up on his skin rather slowly and then he grunted and doubled over in pain. And within a few minutes all his clothes were ripped off and there was a huge wolf standing in his place on his hind legs. I did not need anyone to say that he was a werewolf and for the first time I came to understand that difference between a werewolf and a wolf shifter.

He was also taken away and then gradually all the students finished their transformations including Melanie who became a pure blooded sorceress. And that was indeed a rare occurrence which meant that she was going to be a lot more powerful than the other girls who had been deemed as witches. Andrea was a vampire as suspected but she was a lot better at controlling her pain than Taylor probably because she was mentally ready for it. There were a few Elemental mages, like earth and water but nothing more serious. There were a few other shifters as well, and one was a hawk. Rare indeed, but not very uncommon.

One was also a male sorcerer who was deemed to be blessed with a dark gift of putting the best hexes and curses which were possible. I rolled my eyes at the announcement made by the Headmaster.

The only highlight of the evening was Freddie became an elf. And that too for the first time in a century. He changed in his appearance and his ears grew pointed and his skin was slightly mottled but apart from that nothing more happened. Once when the transformation was complete he let out a cry, or a wail would be rather more appropriate saying,” I am hideous…”

I could not hold back my laughter and I laughed out loud as Freddie shot a nasty look in my direction. I knew I was going to hear a lot of bad things from him and I even probably deserved that but his wailing was absolutely hilarious.

And then it was my turn. I waited for my name to be called but I guess that I was wrong. Before me Bellamy Johnson was called. I had forgotten that she was going to take the initiation again this time for her powers to be awakened. I just hoped that everything was alright with her.. and I could help her with any lingering problems from that vampire. But something told me that it was not going to be the only problem that I was going to be facing in the coming days.

Bellamy came and stood before headmaster Motley as she rose from the seat in the audience and came up to the stage. She looked at me in the curtains and then smiled.

Then she took the chalice from headmaster’s hands and breathed in deeply before drinking it. A slight liquid spilled from the corner of her lips and I found that it was not the usual red coloured stuff that they were giving the other students but rather a black coloured sludgy one.

And then she fell down on the stage and started having seizures. Immediately I ran out from behind the curtains because I knew that there was going to be no one who would come to her aid. They had poisoned her.

THESE BASTARDS HAD POISONED HER.

And that was the only thought that roared in my head as I screamed out loud and caught hold of Bellamy whose eyes had rolled back and now were absolutely white with all her pupils and everything going white and the next thing I knew was she was foaming at her mouth and her hair was going white. Her dark mahogany coloured hair was now a shining white and then suddenly the seizure stopped.

“Do something. She is dying….” I shouted at the Headmaster but he looked at me with sad and calm gaze and said,” No my dear girl, she is merely transforming. We had not been able to understand it fully last year but now we know what we have amongst us. She will be fine.”

He said the words but I did not feel even remotely that she will be fine. She was sickly and pale and absolutely unconscious and her breathing was akin to nothing. And then she sat up all of a sudden and looked at me.

Her eyes were white and she smiled. It was a soft smiled and said,” You have the heart of an angel, sweetie.”

And then she fell unconscious again.

“WE HAVE A SEER AMONGST US WITH THE GIFT OF THE SIGHT!!!” roared Headmaster Motley as the entire student body cheered up as if it was something magical. I wanted to die in shame at that moment and then Bellamy was taken away by one of the servants and finally I was the only one standing.