Chapter Five
Audrey
“ A s I was saying, some of you won’t make it past the first day, or even the first week—let alone any longer than that.” She glances over her shoulder, taking each of us in. “There might be one or two of you that might last longer, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.”
This. Bitch.
“Okay, I take it back,” Diana murmurs. “I think she really is just a douche canoe.”
“It’s because she’s a harpy,” I whisper in return, smirking as her eyes go wide.
“Seriously? How do you know that?”
I shrug. “You can’t tell? I knew what all of you were before you mentioned it. I figured it was just normal.”
“Definitely not normal, and not something I can do at all. I wonder if it’s some special witch ability you have.”
“I don’t think it’s something witches normally can do, but since I don’t have all of my memories, maybe I’m just wrong.” Glancing at Professor Gregory again, I find her glaring at us. “I think we should be quiet until we get to the dorm.”
She follows my line of sight and winces. “I think you might be right.”
Professor Gregory wrinkles her nose, her disgust for me clear, before she turns back around and pushes open the door. The rest of us file out behind her, getting our first look at the campus and the underworld. I’m pretty sure that Wraith said it was in the underworld, otherwise I’m not sure how I know that.
It’s unlike anything I could ever have imagined. I mean, when you think of the underworld, you think of hell. When you think of hell, you think of fire and brimstone, but there’s none of that here. The land is lush and green, something I can tell just from the light shining down on us as we follow the professor up the pathway.
I’m confused for a moment by the light that seems to filter down from the sky since there seems to be no moon or stars. In fact, the sky just seems to be nearly black but is somehow emitting light.
I glance back at the building we just exited, surprised to see how big it is. Jerking back around, my mouth falls open the further we go into campus. The buildings are old and gothic, but obviously well kept, and there’s a lot of them. The professor points out the buildings, telling us their names and what they’re used for, but I’m paying no attention to her. I’m sure it’s all information I can find elsewhere without having to listen to her annoying voice. Instead, I find myself staring at the architecture and the gorgeous stained-glass windows that seem to fill the first floor of each building.
It takes us about twenty minutes to reach the dorms, though the first ten rows look more like houses than dorms. Beyond the houses there are some actual five-story dorm buildings, followed by eight-story buildings, and finally ten-story buildings. While they attempted to keep the architecture the same, it’s clear to me that these were all built at different times.
“Today’s candidates are all in building 113 on the tenth floor,” the professor announces, pointing her finger to a building that’s another half mile down the pathway.
Shit. It’s going to suck going to classes. It’s going to take us thirty or forty minutes just to make it to the main part of campus.
“Gods, who knew we were going to have to walk so much after dying?” Diana mutters with a laugh. “I hate this.”
“Girl, same. They better have some way to get back to the main part of the campus faster, because there’s no way my ass is waking up an hour early every day just to make this trek.”
The two of us giggle as we finally approach our building. Professor Gregory swings open the front door, gesturing for us to go ahead of her. I’ve never been more grateful than when my eyes land on the elevator. Living on the tenth floor without an elevator is not my idea of fun.
Celeste presses the button as the professor catches up to us. “Hmph, I was going to suggest we take the stairs, but I guess we can take the elevator.”
“Are you fucking insane?” I gape at her, no longer able to hold my tongue. “We just hiked across campus for what? Forty minutes? And you think we should climb ten flights of stairs? You might be a masochist, but I’m sure as hell not.”
She scoffs. “No, what you are is lazy and out of shape.”
“Out of shape?” I laugh, glancing down at my body. I might be thin, but I have curves in the right places, and more than enough muscles for a woman of my stature. “You know what? This is so not worth it. You obviously don’t like me, and I can’t be bothered to change your mind. I’m too fucking tired for this shit.”
Should I be cussing at a woman who is likely to be one of my teachers? Absolutely not, but I just found out I’m dead. I feel like this is one of those things that can be forgiven.
I squeeze between the other women, sliding into the elevator as soon as the door opens. I’m so over this bitch. It’s clear that she’s catty and only wants to tear others down to make her feel better about herself. There’s no point in engaging with her. She’s not worth my time. I don’t care that she might be my professor. I’m over it.
Diana comes to stand next to me in the corner of the elevator. “You good?”
“I’m fine. I just realized that I’m putting forth too much energy being annoyed with this woman who’s obviously miserable. She’s not worth my time.” I don’t bother keeping my words quiet, my eyes never leaving the professor.
Her face turns a bright red as she glares at me before turning back around and pressing the button for the tenth floor. Good, maybe she’ll stop harping on us—pun fully intended. I’m just over her shit. I need a good night’s sleep, that’s for sure.
The professor is the first to exit, walking briskly down the hallway without looking back at us as she speaks. “Your room number is eighty-two. There are no keys. You’ll find a scanner next to the door. It reads your magic to allow you entry. If you were human, it would read your palm, but since you’re all supernaturals, you don’t have to worry about it.”
When she comes to a stop outside of our door, she turns to Violet, gesturing for her to lay her hand on the pad. When she does, the pad lights up moments before a thin, red, shimmering cloud appears on top of her hand. My mouth falls open as I turn to Diana, but I quickly realize she didn’t see anything.
What was that? Was that Violet’s magic? Can I also see people’s magic, and not just sense it? If so, then there’s no way I’m just a witch, right? But even as the thought passes through me, I can’t deny the belief that I am a witch.
Fuck it. I guess it doesn’t really matter. I’ll worry about it after my memories come back.
“Each of the suites is set up the same.” The professor pushes open the door and steps inside, leaving us to follow her. “There’s a kitchenette so you can keep food and drinks here—and yes, you do still need to eat. We don’t give up eating when we die, though it would be much more convenient if we did. You’ll be able to make basic things in your suite, but most people choose to eat in the dining hall.
“As you can see, there’s a shared living area. Each room will house two of you and there are two bathrooms in the suite. They’re between each set of bedrooms with a door off the living area as well. You can choose which rooms you want, we don’t assign them. Just don’t get too comfortable here. As I said, most of you will be gone within the first month, and those that do remain will be moved to another dorm no later than the end of the second month. Each room has two beds, two desks, two dressers, and two bookcases. You’ll share a closet. You’ll find a tablet, a phone, and a laptop on each of your desks. These are the property of Scythe Academy, though if by some miracle, you manage to make it until graduation, they’re yours to keep.
“On each device, you’ll find your schedules. Tomorrow will be slightly different, as you have orientation for most of the day, but every day you will have the same four classes. The times may change, and your professors might change, but the classes will always remain the same until you graduate or are sent for judgment.” She looks over each of us dismissively, obviously believing that none of us will make it to graduation. “Things change quickly around here due to the high turnover rate, so get used to it. If you can’t hack it, you might as well give up now. Because Death is a fair man, he doesn’t expect you to attend classes every day of the week. You’ll have the weekends off just like they do on earth.”
I don’t bother holding back my scoff this time. I really don’t like this woman, and calling Death a fair man? I’m not sure that I agree with that statement, but I guess time will tell.
Her eyes narrow as her attention turns to me. “If you find yourself suddenly remembering your friends and families you left behind when you died, don’t bother trying to use the phones to reach them—they won’t work. They’re powered by magic and are only set to work in the underworld. You’ll also find the academy rules and expectations for your tenure here on your devices. They will go over this in your orientation tomorrow, but it might be good to read through it before then.”
Yeah, in the abundance of time that I’m sure we have before we’re expected to be at said orientation.
At least this time, I manage to only say it inside my head and not out loud. I’ll count that as a win.
“Now, I’ll leave you to it.” Professor Gregory shakes her head when Daphne raises her hand. “Any questions you have will be answered in your orientation tomorrow.”
Without another word, she spins on her heels and leaves the suite, slamming the door behind her.
“What a bitch,” I mutter with a sigh. “The least they could do is have people who are actually helpful do this.”
Daphne giggles, ducking her head as she hides behind her hair. “I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought she was a bitch.”
“Especially to you, Audrey.” Madison shakes her head. “I’m going to pick out a room and crash.”
Diana grabs my hand, dragging me toward one of the rooms. “Dibs on being your roomie.”