Chapter 1

Aithusa's POV

The wind howls as the students arrive through the gates, hustling and bustling down the corridors. Friends are greeting each other with a hug or a playful punch while newcomers stand looking scared. The seniors stand, tall and proud, confidence born of experience. Soon the bells ring and everybody runs except an occasional slowcoach or chatterbox. Everybody goes in except one and all is quiet; the girl smiles to herself. "Another school year begins," she thinks before smiling and running in to join the others.

The halls were crowded with people, and the chaos was so perfect, like a movie. There was the couple that was always making out on the left side of the hall, and about ten feet farther down, the cliquey girls. Opposite them, the cliquey jocks, and between them, the parade of band geeks with their huge instrument cases.

There were the aerospace tech kids who never did anything but make paper airplanes and the fashion kids that wheeled mannequins and clothing racks down the halls. And then there was me, not that I fit into any of those groups.

I had been a pariah since I can remember my life here. It did not matter to me that they thought that I was a freak or considered me to be an outcaste. The more important factor which had kept me awake through the nights was what I had been dreaming.

Yes!! And I remember my dreams in crystal clear intensity.

In the dream I am sitting in a field of green wheat, the stalks bend lazily in the wind and I marvel at the grains. Each one is distinct and though different from the others, still perfectly formed. I run my hand along the edge to feel the combination of rough and smooth and then hold my face upward to feel the warm light of the mid summer day.

The air smells just right and the birds fly in an almost cloudless sky. I start walking, the filed goes on forever and after a while my feet become roots, digging into the soil. My hands become green, soon I am also wheat, and I wave happily in the wind.

And as I am waiting I find a dark shadow coming onwards towards me…and then I wake up..

It was meaningless I knew but what could I do…they have been keeping me awake for quite a long time now…at least a few weeks.

“Looks like you did not get any sleep last night either, girl,” said Rook, my best friend. He was the only one who had been with me since the beginning and he knew everything about me.

“The dreams are really killing me, Rook…I don’t know how long I can deal with going without any sleep at all,” I said to my friend and he snorted.

“Girl, with the schedule you keep you can basically give a vampire run for his money. But yeah, you are right…sleep is necessary,” he said as they both took out their books from the lockers and checked in their classes.

“What did you dream of this time?” asked Rook as we proceeded towards our English class.

“That I am in a field of wheat and keep walking and then suddenly I am wheat myself and I am happy,” I replied.

Rook stopped for a moment and then he said with a sigh,” Ai, I have to tell you that you have a serious gift for summary. What was that? Ten words?”

“You might think that it is funny but it is not…what kind of person keeps on having the same dream every single day?” I asked in frustration.

“The one who has unresolved issues at the back of her mind to deal with,” came the reply and I staggered back at the sudden intrusion on my private space.

It was our linguistics teacher. He was a temp and taught us three languages along with the development of languages. And for some reason I was really good in his class, he had been teaching us last year as well and it looked like he was back again with us for another year.

“Sorry Sir, I did not see you there,” said Rook and I mumbled a sorry as well even though we had nothing to be exactly sorry for. He was the one who was walking on us.

“Nah that is fine, Mr. Rookwood. But I think that Ms. Ellen should see the counsellor today. If she is being plagued by something and her sleep is being affected then it is not a good thing,” said Mr. Lobo and then he sauntered.

“I have to agree that the man did not tell something very bad. It might really work, you know? Talking to someone about what you are thinking and what you are facing?” prompted Rook and I could only glare at him. How could he even suggest something like that? I might not be a typical nerd like him but that did not mean that I was going to meet the counselor on the first day of new term just because of a few dreams. For all I knew, they might mean something like I wanted to be together with nature because I did not like living in the city…

“Let’s get to class. I don’t want to be late. And Ms. Paredes is not known to treat kindly to those who are late to her class and I don’t want to get detention on the beginning of school term,” I said as we entered the classroom. As usual I sat in the first bench and all the beauty queens looked at me like I was an alien and then sniggered saying something whispering amongst themselves but I did not really care at all.

The class started as soon as Ms. Paredes came in and like always I could hear nothing else and the day passed away like any other school day. When it was lunch break I collided with Mr. Lobo again and he said,” Would you come with me, Ms. Ellen? You may have your lunch with us in the meeting room itself.”