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In one leap, I moved to the window, I opened it by touch, without taking my gaze off this big-eyed one. A light breeze with a pleasant evening coolness stroked my face and ruffled my hair, but I didn’t even think about wasting time getting myself in order.
Instead, she blocked the white furry man’s path, decisively and boldly placing her foot in his way.
Stopping abruptly, he looked at me as if with incomprehension, rising slightly on his front paws with indignation. I looked this way and that.
I tried my best to keep my cool.
In the end, probably considering me inadequate, the spider chose a workaround.
But stubbornness is my second self. This corridor is too small for the two of us and my great fear.
Take a deep breath, exhale slowly. Carefully grabbing the furry one by his disgusting body with my fingers, I instantly sat him down on the metal frame outside the window and slammed the shutter, locking it tightly.
The heart was beating fast and fast. My pulse beat like a drum in my ears, and through it I could hear my own rapid breathing. This moment, while I was carrying the spider, seemed like an eternity to me. The furry one tried to get out, to reach me with his nasty paws, tickled my skin with them and resisted with all his might.
Even the spiders here were strange! I've never come across white ones in my life. I just sincerely hoped that it was not poisonous!
After wiping my palms on my overalls, I returned to the door, took a breath and allowed myself to close my eyelids for a moment. However, she immediately realized that she had so absurdly missed some part of the conversation. Incredible regret immediately closed around my throat like a pressing ring, but what I had done could not be undone.
I could not think adequately if I knew that there was a spider close to me.
“…don’t let Sally near the Recorder,” I caught, concentrating on the voices.
“Are you afraid that she will find out who her father is?” – the question from Madame Pelisey sounded mockingly.
I leaned against the wall as close as possible. This was the second topic that my mother and I never discussed openly and frankly. Once, when I was older, I received a meager answer from her that it was a casual one-night stand, which she never regretted at all.
But I was sorely lacking this data. One smart person wrote that we are our past, tied to the destinies of our ancestors. If you don't know your family, you simply don't know yourself.
“I wouldn’t want to complicate things even more,” the parent answered restrainedly.
“Aletra, I haven’t agreed to take her yet.” You have always been unbearably stubborn in your intentions and decisions! – the head of the academy was indignant with admiration that was inexplicable to me. – Okay, I'll take your daughter. But only out of respect for my late friend. Your mother was a wonderful person and would never forgive me if I left her granddaughter in trouble. Notes? What are you going to do next?
I was literally torn apart by the overwhelming emotions. They tipped over like cold water, crawling under my clothes with prickly needles that made my skin burn unbearably. I wanted to hear my mother's plans. Yes, I just had to know them! Not for the sake of peace: worries will overtake me anyway, because I already know that she is going to deal with our pursuer.
I had to hear her plans so that I could find her if something happened.
Yes, part of me has already accepted that I will stay in this dark academy for a while, because my mother is really stubborn and stubborn. If she has already decided something, then so be it.
But the other part!
I didn’t know how yet, but I was going to leave this frightening strange prison at any cost. What were your mother's abilities? Did she even have them? And who then was the one who haunted us all these years? Mad scientists with their sights set on a superhero? Decided to blackmail him into fulfilling his every whim, helping him do evil?
Each new idea seemed crazier than the previous one. I knew that I would simply go crazy if I stayed here without any initiative, waiting for news from my mother. Because in the real world, superheroes weren't immortal.
– What will you do with the Hunter? – Madame Pelisey asked measuredly, even casually.
And I realized that because of my own emotions I had again missed part of the conversation. Tired. I was already too tired, and my concentration level kept jumping, allowing me to hear only fragments now.
I probably won't get away with two hours of sleep this time.
Mom’s voice now seemed terribly distant:
– I’ll take him as far as possible and…
– Excuse me, have you seen a white spider here? – a voice unfamiliar to me burst into the silence of the corridor.
Turning around, I saw a handsome guy about the same age two steps away from me. He smiled politely as he looked at me. Apparently, he was waiting for an answer, but there was still no answer, because I practically hovered, my gaze fixed on his face.
It turned out to be nobly pale. Exactly noble, and not like a person with chronic lack of sleep, where black circles under the eyes occupy most of the face.
A neat triangular chin, slightly protruding forward. Expressive, clearly defined lips, large nose and sharp cheekbones. The dark green eyes seemed incredible, bewitching, like emeralds in the reflection of a flame.
A deep, soulful look.
His charm demolished all barriers. Each part of the face alone would never have made anyone handsome, but in him all this wealth was combined surprisingly harmoniously. Even his slightly longer dark hair was combed back in a perfectly casual manner. As if after a four-hour styling session in a beauty salon to advertise a newfangled shampoo.
His smile grew a little wider. Expressive dimples appeared on the cheeks.
Confused, I looked down and finally noticed his shape. Black tailored trousers, a black turtleneck and a burgundy jacket in a calm, deep shade. The latter bore the embroidered gold emblem of the Midnighter Academy: a pointed moon and the shadow of a bat with outstretched wings.
“Spider,” the guy reminded politely. – Furry, scary, white, runs fast.
Hearing the characteristics of the creature the student was looking for, I seemed to wake up and instantly became cold. Apparently, that furry guy was this brunette’s pet, and I…
– No, sorry. “I didn’t see,” I answered, stuttering slightly, feeling how treacherously my cheeks turned red with shame.
More than anything, I hated lying. I felt terribly uncomfortable, awkward, and my eyes just wanted to move to the window to check if the multi-legged creature had crawled away. What if the stalemate could still be saved?
She looked at the guy again. Now he looked at me strangely. My heart beat with triple force. Did he really figure out my deception so quickly and easily?
–Are you new? – he suddenly asked quite peacefully.
A weight has just been lifted off my shoulders. But then there was almost a rockfall because I didn’t have time to answer. My nascent thought was interrupted by a loud knock…
Out the window.
We both turned toward the sound as if on cue. Behind the glass, on a wide metallic tint, a furious blond man, like a thousand wild bees, sat on his haunches, dressed in a black tracksuit with the academy emblem on his jacket. His face seemed even paler than the brunette’s, and his features sharper.
He glared at me with undisguised hatred, intending to make a couple of holes in me at once. Brown eyes seemed almost black due to the corrosive squint. The rounded oval of the face did not add softness at all, the straight nose divided it into two symmetrical halves, and the narrow lips were compressed into a barely noticeable stubborn line. Only the wide dark eyebrows brought dissonance into this harmonious villainous face, because the slicked hair turned out to be light, almost white.
Hearing the brunette's restrained laughter, I almost jumped in surprise. Lightly covering his lips with his palm, he laughed even with his eyes, causing tears to appear in the corners. However, the guy didn’t even think of rushing to the blond’s aid. And then I myself ran to the window to open it.
– You! – the blond roared, climbing out onto the windowsill. Jumping from him to the floor, the guy straightened up and found himself much taller than me. Not even a head – one and a half. – How dare you throw me out the window?!
“I didn’t throw it away, but carefully put it in,” I justified myself, now cowering at the wall opposite the entrance to the office. – And I didn’t know that he, that is, you, that is, that he… I…
– Did you want to be blown away by the wind? Or maybe it was eaten by a bird? – the blond hissed.
His hoarse voice gave me goosebumps. It was unbearable to stand under this gaze, so I decided to escape. In the sense that she took advantage of the fact that the guy was distracted by the brunette’s speech and ran back closer to the office.
To the door behind which, I hoped, I could be saved from the punishing hand of this screamer!
– Come on, Percy. She probably didn't do it on purpose. It is so? – the brunette smiled restrainedly, trying to pull himself together, but chuckles danced in his green eyes.
– So. I didn’t even know that… Well… That spiders can be people. Although no, there is Spider-Man, damn it. Is he really real? – I muttered chaotically, having a persistent desire to hide behind the brunette’s back, because the blond’s destroying gaze found me again.
Now the opposite wall seemed charmingly attractive to me. Actually, having decided to repeat my maneuver, I got caught. More precisely, she froze halfway, because the door to the office of the head of the Academy of Midnighters swung open, revealing to us, probably, the director of this educational institution.
Once I looked into her eyes, I found myself opening my mouth in surprise. I imagined an older woman, strict and prim, dry, like yesterday’s baguette, but in no way the same age as my mother. The corrosive gaze seemed creepy – maybe because of the different eyes? The left one was light brown and more like a cat, and the right one was light gray, with a wide black border.
Dark hair and sparse silver reflecting the light from the lamps. The clothes were a multi-layered complex outfit. A light, flowing floor-length dress in the style of an ancient Roman toga was partially hidden by a brown jacket made of stiff fabric with leather inserts. It looked more like a corset, but at the same time hid the shoulders and neck, had a high, diverging collar and a wide belt at the waist – with a gold oval plaque.
A slight, subtle hint of a smile appeared on Madame Pelisay’s lips.
– And here are my best students. You guys are just in time. I see you have already met Salaman. She is new and from now on will be a first year student at our academy. I…
Without hearing what the director wanted to say, the blond decided to leave. He walked confidently, calmly, and angrily. I barely had time to step aside, otherwise, I swear, he would have simply knocked me out of my place like an insignificant nuisance. His elbow touched my shoulder on the edge, beyond which only one flash would be enough for my restraint to crack at the seams.
“Monsieur Becriv, don’t you think it’s impolite of you to just up and leave when someone is talking to you?” – the woman loudly turned to the guy’s back, narrowing her eyes angrily.
Only these minor changes betrayed her dissatisfaction. It seems that someone was hired for a pencil, and for some reason I was sincerely happy about this.
But she didn’t dare turn around. He ran away – and that's fine. I still needed a spider to accompany me!
Apparently, thinking that the blond’s action had somehow offended me, the woman smiled softly at me.
– Never mind, Sally. Persidy is sometimes out of sorts. But Monsieur Darkwood will probably not refuse to show you the academy and generally help you settle within our walls for the first time. I would tell you everything and show you everything myself, but I’m already in a terrible hurry, in fact I’m late. How will you, Monsieur Darkwood, cope with the task entrusted to you?
“It would be an honor, Madame Pelisey,” the brunette responded, slightly bowing his head in agreement.
“Then I have one more request for you, Nirel.” See that your friend behaves decently in my absence.
“Of course, madam,” the student agreed easily.
Although if I were him, I would be careful about making such promises. Yes, he’s crazy – this blond! Like a savage who fell from a branch! Just think, I sat outside the window for a few minutes. Didn't fall apart!
True, I still felt shame. It was somehow inconvenient. But you can understand me: before my eyes, spiders did not turn into people.
Noting that the parent had not left the office, I became worried, trying to look into the secretary’s room:
–Where is my mother?
“She will write to you once a week, Mademoiselle Dragon,” Madame’s voice became enveloping, soothing.
But I was not going to calm down!
“My last name is Evesey,” she said angrily.
“Not here, Salaman,” the woman objected sternly. – In the Academy of Midnighters you are registered as Dragon – on your father’s side.
Shaking my head to get rid of the question that immediately arose in my thoughts about the second parent, whom I had never seen, I returned to the main topic. I tried not to look at the unwitting witness of our conversation. My voice was firm and expressed determination:
“Madame Pelisey, I don’t want to stay here.” And what should I do at the academy?
The director of the school smiled softly. Her gaze showed condescension, as if she knew in advance that my reaction would be exactly like this.
“In my academy you will learn to live with the one who sits inside you, my dear.” In each of those born at midnight lives the Dark Side, the so-called gift of the ancestors. Your mother said that your abilities have not yet manifested themselves, so within the walls of this educational institution you will have to find them and curb them.
“I don’t have any gift,” I said dryly, without even lying.
There were unusual abilities, yes, but there was no gift.
– And we still have to find out, Salaman. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. This is what happens when you are in a hurry,” the woman realized with a smile. – Madame Noshli Pelisay. Welcome to the Midnighter Academy.
Chapter 3. Distant ancestors
My guide and I walked out of the main building of the academy, under the light of the lanterns, together with madam. During my descent to the first floor, I learned that my things would be brought directly to the room allocated to me. But not mom. My parent chose not to see me before leaving, which was incredibly offensive. But she sent a note through Madame Pelisey.
However, I didn’t read anything new in it. Aletra Evesey promised to write to me once a week and asked me not to be stubborn, emphasizing that my presence at this academy was the best decision for both of us. This way she wouldn’t worry about me, because I was now under reliable protection.
But she didn’t take into account that I’m not a soulless robot either. Where should I put my excitement? How to get rid of emerging fears?
Having stood on the porch of the academy to wait for Madame Pelisey to disappear behind the gate, I confidently headed towards it, completely ignoring both the gargoyle that was not sparing my nerves and the student assigned to me.
No matter what mom says, we will be safer together. I'll look after her, and she'll look after me. This plan worked perfectly for eighteen years.
And it’s elementary: who will be on duty while mom is sleeping? When I grew up, we took turns doing this service.
No, I understood perfectly well that she was tired. I didn't like the nomadic life either. At first it seemed interesting: new cities, new people, so much unknown ahead. But the complete lack of consistency is annoying. Everyone wants a home where they can return after long travels and feel relaxed and comfortable.
– Hey, where are you going? – the brunette called out to me as soon as I ran down the steps. – The freshman dormitory is on the other side.
“Go there yourself,” I snapped, simultaneously sticking out my tongue to the once again petrified gargoyle. “I’m not going to stay here just because your madam said so.”
“So they brought you here by force?”
“They brought it,” I stubbornly corrected, walking around the flower beds along the stone-paved path.
– I'm sorry.
I looked at the guy in surprise, but only for a moment. His face actually showed genuine regret.
“People rarely come here against their will. Usually due to an unstable gift.
– I don’t have any gift! – I repeated the lie.
“Yes, whatever you say,” he said conciliatoryly. “But you still can’t get out of the gate.” For this you need a pass.
– I can do without a pass. Go about your business already. I definitely don't need spies.
Having reached the gate, I just waved away the guy who again wanted to tell me something. Instead, she touched the gate, intending to simply climb over it. I hoped that my mother was delayed on this side or had not yet managed to drive away from the library, unloading my few things, otherwise it would be more difficult to find her.
But I will find it. Because together and only together we are strong.
However, as soon as I grabbed the metal bars with my other hand, I was abruptly thrown away from the gate. It was so thrown that if I landed on the grass or path, I would definitely have left bruises.
But I was lucky. The brunette softened my fall. By yourself. Having knocked him down, I found us in a flowerbed with shaped grass. Turning over to face him, she found it.
“I told you: you need a pass to go out the gate,” Nirel raised his head.
At the same time, he held me by the waist with both hands.
Resting her palms on his chest to be as far away from his face as possible, she looked around. It threw us back quite a bit – about thirty meters. I wonder if I can get a ladder around here somewhere?
The guy's voice broke into my thoughts:
– I understand that you are angry now.
I was truly surprised.
–Am I angry? Yes, I'm furious. Mom left me here, and she went to hell.
“She probably had reasons for this.” I'm sure if she could, she wouldn't leave you here.
Pulling me close again, he suddenly rolled with me. Now I was lying on the grass, which made me both embarrassed and taken aback, because his face was again unacceptably close, and he was hanging over me, supporting the weight of his body in his arms.
– You don’t even know her! – I was indignant, floundering under him.
In order to free himself, he had to turn on his side and with an effort, out of stubbornness, tear one of his hands off the ground. This was the only way I was able to roll away and get to my feet.
The student then stood up.
– Can we get a ladder? Or a high stepladder?
Carefully suppressing the embarrassment that arose out of nowhere, I took a closer look at the surrounding surroundings. I looked among the flower beds, grass, benches and bushes for something that I could use to build a lifting tower. The benches were not suitable for this purpose: their metal legs were embedded in the paths.
– Very unlikely. And even if something similar can be found at the academy, no one will give you anything. Let's go, I'll take you to the dorm. There is still a little time before dinner to settle into the new place.
– Nirel… That’s your name, right? – I clarified, just in case, and, having received a confident nod, continued: – Nirel, you need to go and settle in. And I need to get a pass. Where can I get it?
– Only with the freshman curator. And for this you need to go to the hostel.
A mocking smile appeared on his lips. And so I understood its nature. To get the pass, I still have to do what I just tried my best to avoid.
“I’m sure you’ll like it here,” he softened, motioning for me to go forward.
– But not me.
Walking around him in a wide circle, I walked with an independent air to the two-story building closest to the academy. It was also built from gray stone. Under the night sky it seemed dark and gloomy.
“The freshman building is on the other side,” they politely informed me, but I directly felt that the guy was laughing at that moment.
Personally, I was not laughing. Time irrevocably slipped through our fingers, and the longer we walked along the paths past benches and lampposts, falling under the shadows of trees with voluminous foliage, the stronger the confidence grew in me that I would not make it in time.
I won’t be able to get near our rental car before my mom leaves.
–Are you a freshman too? – I asked, looking sideways at my guide.
I felt comfortable walking next to him in silence, but my innate curiosity did not allow me to remain silent. Nirel was like those who were called “golden boys” in the schools where I studied. Ideal appearance, ideal manners and enormous pride tied to immense arrogance.
If these guys didn't have a brain at all, they were incredibly annoying. And if everything was in order with the thought, then they evoked fear on an instinctive level. Because they made wonderful manipulators.
I didn’t yet understand which nut I got.
– Freshman? – the student was restrainedly surprised, defiantly raising his right eyebrow. – No, I'm already on the third. There are two and a half years left until graduation.
– And this one?
Hinting at Spider-Man, I played with my eyebrows.
– This? – Nirel asked, frowning. -Are you talking about Percy? He's also in third. He just can’t come to terms with the fact that I have a better gift of premonition than he does.
A chuckle escaped the expressive lips, and with an effort of will I forced myself to look at his eyes.
“I thought that I wouldn’t be able to find him in the form of a spider.”
– Find… Were you playing hide and seek, or what?
I was horrified. Is there really nothing to do here?
– You can say so. Only the territory is not limited and there are no rules. Each of us has abilities. So we checked them.
– Like acute vision or hearing? – I suggested casually, trying not to be seen as being overly interested.
The guy thought for a moment.
– Let’s put it this way: what do you know about Midnighters anyway?
As promised, by this time the guy had escorted me to the freshman building, but I was in no hurry to go inside the gray two-story building.
I understood that running to the gate, rustling with slippers, no longer made sense. Now you need to act with a cool head, with a clearly defined plan. This technique worked best. At least with mom.
Sitting down on a bench opposite the high porch, I decided to find out as much information as possible. Moreover, Nirel answered willingly, did not hide anything and tried to add more details, as if he were explaining to a child.
I was not a child, but my knowledge was characterized by one single word – meager. There was nothing I could do to make the story easier for my interlocutor. I knew almost nothing that was really, in my opinion, important.
I only learned today that there is a territory hidden from human eyes. After a sleepless night spent on the road, a hectic morning with changing cars, and a not very tasty lunch at an eatery with the telling name “Massacre,” my mother brought me to the central city library in Ashwool.
This building was very different from its counterparts on the street. The old houses here were demolished one after another due to their unsuitable condition, and in their place two-story townhouses with an attic under the roof were built. Red brick, dark brown roof. The houses with several apartments looked cozy and well-kept, but the library did not correspond at all to their architecture, or to the new look of the area as a whole.
No, this building also looked clean and tidy. But at the same time, it felt like Her Majesty the Queen in a fluffy crinoline dress was stuck between modern families from an advertisement for toothpaste or mayonnaise. I was even afraid to go inside. No, I wasn’t afraid that the walls would suddenly collapse, but I was sincerely worried whether we could even go there.
What if, instead of a library, there has long been a museum with the most valuable exhibits from the times of that same queen?