𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟓

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Ring.

The first chime of the school bell echoed from outside, signaling students it was time to get to class. Ellie stood nervously in front of the tall gothic building, her palms sweating and heart racing. She closed her eyes, breathing in the air as the warm summer breeze caressed her olive cheeks.

Students ran past her, causing one of them to bump into her accidentally, making them trip. "Sorry," she apologized, only for the girl to give her a nasty look before walking away with her friend.

"Rude," she mumbled, before closing her eyes, taking a deep breath, and finally stepping forward up the stairs and into the building. As she stepped inside, she immediately stopped in her tracks, astonished by what she was seeing.

A large, ornate lobby greeted her, filled with natural light from the tall double arched windows, and a high ceiling above, which hung a chandelier. In the middle of the lobby stood a bulletin board with various announcements and posters regarding the new school year. She knew the school was huge, but not this huge. Then again, the school from the outside looked twice as big as the inside.

On both sides of the wall featured staircases leading to an upper floor, and below, double doors leading to another hallway. She looked up and noticed a large portrait of a man in a suit, hanging on the wall just above the staircase right in the middle, along with two other portraits, which had two women, all wearing professional fitting. On the left were four rows of empty sofas, with large tables in front of each of them. Black and white tiles covered the floors, and a small wooden desk stood on top of it on the far right.

Behind it stood a woman, possibly in her mid-forties, wearing her long dark jet-black hair pinned to the side and with what looked like an awful amount of either hairspray or styling gel, and a taupe long-sleeved button-down silk blouse that looked to be tucked into her pants from the tightness of the blouse itself.

She was typing on her computer, nails painted dark red. The sunlight from the windows cast an attractive glow on her golden-brown skin. Ellie walked toward the desk, the woman looking up and smiling welcomely. "Hello, how may I help you?" she asked with a gentle Indian accent.

"Hi, I'm new. Is this where I get my schedule?" Ellie questioned, subtly scrunching her nose from the strong vanilla and honey-scented perfume that the woman was wearing. "No, that would be the registrar's office. It's to your right, there," she answered calmly, pointing toward a room with a glass window.

"Thank you," Ellie replied, before walking toward the window and seeing an extremely pale man, elder, with a medium beard, oval glasses, and wearing a grey suit. He looked up from the book he was reading once he noticed her, his light blue eyes seeming to be fading. He looked like he was on the brink of death.

Why has this poor old man not yet retired? she wondered with concern.

"Name?" he asked, his voice weak and hoarse. "Elvira Norwood."

"Name please?" he repeated, not hearing her the first time. Ellie sighed frustratedly, rolling her eyes. "Elvira Norwood!" she repeated, hoping he heard her that time. He nodded, placing the book on top of his desk and began typing her name into the computer, immediately seeing it pop up.

The printer abruptly turned on, startling her. He reached his hand over and pulled a piece of paper from the device. "Here you go, have a nice day," the man said, handing her the schedule, before returning his attention to the book, ignoring the telephone ringing beside the computer.

She thanked him, which he either didn't hear or ignored, and walked away. Heading towards the double doors, a girl ran into her from behind, causing her to almost fall. "Hi, sorry for scaring you," she apologized, chuckling in embarrassment. She was quite short, around 5'4 inches, with thick, short, wavy light-brown hair that fell just above her shoulders, and fair skin.

"It's okay, I wasn't looking," Ellie replied, picking up the schedule that fell out of her hand. "No, I was running so that I wouldn't miss breakfast, so it was my fault," she apologized again, still chuckling. "It's alright, trust me," Ellie assured, giggling. The girl looked her up and down and asked, "Is this your first day?"

"Yes, how'd you know?" Ellie replied, furrowing her brows in confusion. "You're not wearing your uniform," her eyes widened in realization, looking down at the girl's uniform.

It was a navy-blue blazer, with gold trim and a crest with a bird embed on it. Underneath the blazer was a white buttoned-down shirt, their collars neatly folded, followed by a yellow and navy blue striped tie. A brown belt fitted around her waist, capturing her petite figure elegantly. Finally, a long navy-blue pleated skirt reached all the way down to her ankles, finishing off with a pair of navy-blue knee-high socks and black squeaky clean dress shoes.

"Oh," she blushed in embarrassment. "My mom was busy on Saturday and couldn't take me to orientation," she explained. Which was true. Her mom had been trying for years to get her into a magic school that taught more advanced classes. In Primary, they would teach easier—basic magic—but once higher education comes along, the magic taught gets harder and more difficult to grasp.

She laughed lightly, her hand over her mouth. "It's okay, It's my first day as well," she clarified. Ellie sighed in relief, thankful that someone else was new other than her.

"Let me see your schedule, maybe we have the same classes," the girl said, holding out her hand. Ellie handed her the piece of paper and she began to scan over it.

"Looks like we only have three classes together, which are Potions, Arcane Theory, and Summoning," she stated, giving the paper back to her.

"Thank you," Ellie replied with a kind smile, folding the paper up neatly. "Oh! I'm Ellie by the way; Ellie Norwood," she introduced herself, extending her hand for a handshake. The girl happily accepted it, a smile spreading across her face as their hands met with a firm grip.

"I'm Amelia, but you can call me Mia," she declared. Letting go of her hand, Amelia said "We have Potions first period. Do you wanna grab breakfast in the cafeteria before we go?"

"I already ate breakfast at home, but I guess some more won't hurt," Ellie answered. "That's great, because then you'll have a full stomach until lunch!" Amelia exclaimed, happily.

Ellie took awe in her charm and bubbly spirit, and replied with a light laugh, saying, "That's right, I will," and at that, the two girls headed off to breakfast, Amelia guiding her in the direction.

___

Having only attended one school in her life, Ellie never thought she would come across a cafeteria that looked more appealing, but she was proven wrong.

As she entered the breathtakingly large dining hall, she couldn't help but gape, stunned by the interior. Intricate wooden beams hung chandeliers on either side, supported by an arched ceiling. The stained glass windows bathed in rich, glowing colors, but the stained glass window at the far end overshadowed them by casting more bright, vibrant hues from the direct sunlight that shone through it.

Her eyes lingered on the polished wooden tables and chairs that were each aligned in rows going down, all occupied by students sitting and chatting, some sitting alone, indicating it was probably their first day as well or they might be introverted.

Mia was too stunned to speak as she looked around as well, but her mouth drooled at the sight of her favorite breakfast meal: creamy oat porridge topped with bananas, honey, and walnuts.

"Are you drooling too, or is it just me?" She questioned, not taking her eyes off the steamy creamy bowls as a student walked away with it and sat down at a random table. He glanced up once he sensed her staring, and she quickly looked away.

"I don't know what you're talking about, not gonna lie, but this was certainly not on the brochure in the tour guide section," Ellie replied, looking around some more. She spotted an empty table and gestured Mia to follow her toward it.

"I'm gonna get us the food. What would you like?" Ellie asked Mia, still standing as she watched her sit herself down. "The porridge, but make sure you add honey and bananas — Oh! And walnuts at the top after you add the honey," she answered, and Ellie nodded before strolling toward the buffet.

Humming to herself and tapping her fingers on the table, Mia glanced around, examining the details of the room she had been too distracted earlier to notice. Her eyes stopped on a boy with ginger red hair and freckles. Two adults, possibly in their 50s or 60s, were sitting with him.

Damn, he's cute!

She didn't realize she was practically gawking at him until Ellie nudged her arm to get her attention. "Oh, thanks," she said, taking the bowl of porridge from her hand and quickly beginning to eat.

Ellie looked at her in surprise as she took a seat. "Sheesh, you must really be hungry," she chuckled, removing the bacon and then began eating her smoked salmon BLAT sandwich.

"I umm.....had little time to eat breakfast before leaving since it was a long drive," Mia replied, scratching her nose before continuing to eat.

"We should hurry then before heading to class," Ellie declared, munching on her sandwich in a rush. "Oh, first years don't have classes on the first day. They get sorted first and a tour around the school and then settle in. Classes start tomorrow for us. Don't stress," Mia explained assuringly.

Sighing in relief, Ellie replied, "Thank god. That makes my mom bringing my stuff later this afternoon after work sound so much better."

Mia took notice of her words, realizing she didn't have any luggage with her when they met only a few minutes ago. "You didn't bring them with you? Why?" she questioned curiously, wiping her mouth with a piece of napkin.

"Time was of the essence. My mom missed orientation, so she didn't know the schedule. She thought we had more time, but we only had forty minutes before classes started. I hadn't even started packing my bags and suitcases. I did pack some stuff the day before, but there were still things left to pack. I thought we had more time for it. To make matters worse, my mom had to get to work in twenty minutes after losing track, so my dad had to take her place and then drive me here."

"Wow, that sounds like a lot," Mia replied, not being able to imagine how stressful that could've been for her. "But you're here now, so at least that's good?"

Ellie nodded, her lips smacking as she swallowed the last bite of her sandwich, and eagerly scooped up the fallen pieces on her plate. Walking toward the auditorium, Ellie put her hand near her mouth to smell her breath, wrinkling her nose at the pungent scent of salmon.

"Do you have gum?" she asked Mia, and Mia nodded, taking out a pack of stride peppermint gum and handing it to her. "Thanks," she replied, placing the piece of gum in her mouth.

Entering the auditorium, the two girls were met with a painted ornate astrological zodiac wheel. The background was painted a deep, rich black filled with twinkling stars like the night sky, depicting various animal symbols. In the center appeared to be what looked like a complex golden rose mandala, its detailed filigree and geometric patterns shimmering with a warm, ethereal glow.

Ahead of them stood a raised stage, occupied by a young woman, possibly in her mid-late twenties, sitting around a desk and flipping through large stacks of papers, seemingly looking for something. She had elf-like ears, pale white skin, and defined cheekbones, followed by thin eyeliner, cherry red lipstick, and glossy long honey-blonde hair that flowed down to her torso. Her black and white polka-dotted dress fitted elegantly around her slender waist, with a belt wrapped around it.

"Gosh, look at it! It looks beautiful, doesn't it?" Mia spoke, admiring the painted zodiac wall. She didn't want to take her eyes off of it.

"Yeah, it looks gorgeous," replied Ellie, taking in every detail of the magnificent painting that covered the whole entire walls.

"Whoever painted this needs a raise to be honest, 'cause this is dope," Mia complemented, grazing the art.

"Well, I'm too young to work here, but thanks for the praise," startled by the sudden new voice, the two girls turned their heads to see a boy standing there, smirking mischievously, his shoulder leaning against the wall.

"Sorry, did I startle you?" he questioned teasingly with a chuckle. Mia rolled her eyes, not having any time for foolishness. "Haha, very funny. There's no way you made this," she responded doubtfully, crossing her arms.

He looked taken aback at her uncertainty, playfully placing a hand on his chest, pretending to be offended. "I can assure you, little lady, that I did, in fact, make this."

Still not convinced, Mia replied, saying, "So I should believe you made all this—," she began, gesturing her hand toward the walls around the auditorium, "and that you're just a student who got permission to? Pfft, please, not even my cousin Arabelle could convince me she painted this."

"Oh, he did, I'm afraid," a middle-aged man with medium-length Ivy League blond hair and light blue eyes chimed in and confirmed. "I'm Professor Goldfinch, but you can call me Finch for short. Giovanni here painted this magnificent art all by himself. Took him 4 months because he didn't want to use his powers. So lame," he explained, jokingly rolling his eyes at the last part.

"Hey, I'm just following the rules of the book," Giovanni responded, holding his hands up in surrender. A sudden realization hit him and he said, "Hey! It's Gio, you know I don't like being called Giovanni!" he complained, Mia laughing at how his voice sounded like a little kid who had just got put in time out after throwing a tantrum.

Gio noticed and asked, "What are you laughing at?" in a smug tone. Still laughing, Mia answered and said, "You're such a child, it's actually funny," Ellie laughed along with her, enjoying the banter between the two pupils.

"Shouldn't you be in class, by the way? You're late, you know?" the man pointed out, well aware that the boy should be attending class at this moment.

"Well, you see Professor, I was on my way there after leaving the library until a vampire just attacked me out of nowhere! I was just at the nurse's office getting checked for a bite. Oh, it was horrible, Professor Finch, you should've been there to see it," he dramatically explained.

The older man looked down at the boy as if he had two heads. "Interesting story, mm-hm. Even more interesting than last year when you said that the vampires attacked you while you were—and I quote—'reading to the poor,' outside at a coffee shop, and the year before where you said you were attacked by them while—and I quote—'walking a sick old lady across the street with her cane,' Mia began to cackle, holding onto her stomach as she tried to catch her breath.

"Whoo! This is just—this is just too good!" she exclaimed in between laughs. Gio glared at her, stabbing daggers.

"Enough, get to class or it's another detention for a week," Finch ordered, and in defeat, Gio gave her one last daggered stare before walking away and to his first-period class.

"Well, now that the bantering is over, you two should get seated. Sorting will be starting soon," Finch declared, and they obeyed, taking a seat in random chairs. "Oh, and he's a sweetheart, believe me. He just has his moments when he gets the opportunity," Finch defended.

"Was it the sick old lady?" Mia retorted in a mocking, remorseful tone, her lips pouting, and Finch chuckled, shaking his head before walking over to another professor and began speaking with him.

After a while, which was probably now an hour, the row of chairs finally filled up, with the chattering of students being the only sound heard all around. A much older woman with forming grey hair and deep mahogany skin stepped into the room, striding toward the stage. Ellie and Mia were both surprised at her confidence. Mia could smell the Patchouli scent on the woman, causing her to hold her breath at the familiar unpleasant scent that her grandmother used to wear.

She stood tall in front of the thin podium, adjusting her 1960s black button body con slit dress that shaped gracefully around her curves. With a neat, sleek bun and bright red lipstick, she presented herself as well-groomed, with her remaining dark brown hair.

She cleared her throat, attempting to get everyone's attention. "Settle down now, students! It's time for sorting," the chatter died down, and everyone gave her their undivided attention.

Satisfied, she began, her voice warm and slightly raspy. "Welcome, first-year students! And especially welcome new faces who've just arrived. My name is Mrs. Crowe, and I'm your headteacher here at Sage Academy: School for Magical Students. It's an absolute pleasure to be here with you all this morning. First and foremost, I would like to go over the rules of the school before we properly begin."

"Rule number one: students must wear the required uniforms during classes at all times and school functions. Rule number two: All students must be in their respective dormitories by the designated curfew, which is 8 pm sharp. By then you will have time for homework and assignments. Exceptions such as the use of the bathroom or school-related activities are acceptable, but please be respectful of the timing," she went on to add a few more rules, such as keeping the dormitories clean, no visitation of the opposite sex without faculty supervision, and prohibited items such as illicit substances or alcohol.

She then listed the rules regarding magic, such as it only being permitted in designated areas of the school grounds, casting spells on fellow students is strictly prohibited, except during sanctioned dueling events, and the use of magic strictly being prohibited in the dormitories and living spaces outside of class hours.

"Violation of these rules will result in your immediate suspension or expulsion, or any magical privileges," she added, seriousness in her voice. "Now, I know everyone has been waiting a while to get sorted, so let's officially begin, shall we?"

Clearing her throat again, she began explaining how it all works. "As most of you know, if any of you read the brochures mailed out to each of you, the sorting is based on houses regarding your Chinese zodiac animal. If you look over to the paintings on the wall, you will see your birth years painted on each side of them underneath the house names."

At that, Mia and Ellie examined the paintings and noticed their years, which they had not noticed before at first, written on the walls in white paint to make them look clearer. "I'm Snake House. You?" Ellie questioned quietly, and Mia replied in the same tone and said, "Me too!" they smiled excitedly at each other and turned their attention back to the lady.

"Usually I explain the traits and such of each zodiac sign, but unfortunately for me, I'm getting old, soooo, without further ado, I will be calling you all up in alphabetical order. Once you hear your name, please come up to the stage," she declared. "Alani Morelli?" a girl with dark brown hair and tanned skin nervously walked up to the stage, her eyes lingering on the floor. The woman from before, the elf, handed Mrs. Crowe a piece of paper from the stack.

She placed the paper on top of the podium stand and scanned her eyes over it. "Ah, yes! One of the most proven to be creative houses there is. They also prove to be very—," pausing, she leaned toward the girl, stopping her from biting on her nails, "worrisome," the girl blushed in embarrassment, her eyes still lingering on the floor.

"Well, let's not waste any more time before you start peeing your pants," she retorted, causing some students to snicker. "With an easygoing mind and confidence to create big things, you're hereby a member of—," she gave herself a dramatic pause before saying, "Goat House!" immediately the crowd of students erupted in applause, some whistling to boost the girl's confidence.

She stepped down the small steps and walked back to her seat, smiling shyly and looking down as the cheers and applause continued. After a couple more names, including Amelia's, it was Ellie's turn.

Breathe.

Just breathe.

You've got this.

Just walk up there, get your house name, and that's it.

Even though you already know it.

Dang it, I should've kept it a surprise for myself.

She finally made it to the stage, her hands sweating like waterfalls. She took a subtle deep breath, trying to keep herself together and her nerves steady.

Mrs. Crowe glanced over at the paper in front of her. "Hmm.....hmm," Ellie's nerves began rising like hungry ducks eating bread crumbs in a pond at the park.

Why is she humming? Just say my name, woman!

"From your demeanor, I do like to believe you're wise and graceful," she finally began. "I just hope you don't show to be....stubborn, to say the least."

Ouch, me too? What'd I do? I'm just an innocent civilization of this school and she's here giving these kids and me a hard time.

I like it.

"Enough chitchat. Let's focus on the task at hand," she declared firmly. The air grew steady, anticipation hanging heavy as the students awaited for Ellie's house to be named. "With curiosity and wisdom, you're hereby a member of—," she paused again for dramatic effect, "Snake House!" cheers erupted and applause filled the air. The room erupted with cheers and applause, the sound echoing off the walls.

She shook Crowe's hand before stepping down the steps, letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Sitting back down, her fingers scratched back and forth on her jeans. Mia noticed and placed a hand over hers, Ellie giving her a warm smile in return.

"I know that this is so cliché to say, but as long as you have me, you'll be fine, ok?" Mia reassured, and Ellie nodded, just hoping that she could make it through the day without having a panic attack.

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Here's the first chapter! I'm so excited for you guys to see how it turns out! 😊 also, here's how the uniforms look. There are 3 kinds for girls and 3 kinds for boys for every student's preference.
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Ignore the hat, AI added it for some reason and some pens😂 but anyway, considering two and four are practically the exact same, we can eliminate four since there's only 3 uniforms for both genders, and because AI messed it up a bit. Different shoes or boots are optional as long as they're appropriate for the school's dress code.

Ok, that's it! Hope you guys liked this chapter. Make sure to vote, comment, and share!.xX