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The girls enter the dorm. The first I recognise immediately to be Honey. She still has the same golden-brown hair that falls to her waist. Guys always fancied her at school because of her heart-shaped face and cupid's bow lips. She's still as stunning as she was the last time I saw her.

The two girls behind her are beautiful too, in different ways. One of the girls has large, thick-rimmed glasses and black hair in pigtails. She's giving me sexy geek vibes.

The other has red hair up in a messy bun, a ton of freckles and an infectious smile that would make anyone in the world smile back.

"Do you smell that, girls?" Honey asks and grins. "We have a new roommate!"

She spins around and spots me hovering in my doorway. "Emmie! You made it!" She cries happily.

She pulls me into her arms before my mind can catch up. I hug her back and smile at the two other girls over her shoulder. She lets me go and ushers me into the living room.

"Girls, this is Emmie, or Emery. We went to secondary together. Emmie, this is Irene." Honey points at the redhead with the bun. "And Esmeralda, but we all call her Esme."

The redhead is Irene, the one with the glasses is Esme. Okay, I can remember that.

"Hey, guys," I reply shyly and give them an awkward wave. "Nice to meet you."

"This is so great!" Esme says happily. "We haven't had a new roommate since last year. She had to drop out cause of some family issues so we thought that room would have stayed empty all year."

"Have you got all of your stuff sorted for tomorrow?" Honey asks.

I nod. "Yeah. All my uniform came."

"Great, cause the teachers are sticklers for uniform. Ugh, Miss Coates is such a bitch, isn't she?"

Irene nods emphatically. "I know! She's obsessed with you having your tie tied correctly. You'd think there would be more important things to focus on in life."

And just like that, I'm accepted into their group. It's a huge relief, to have them pull me onto the sofa and talk to me. They chat away like they've known me for years. They're totally accepting, and I feel my worries start to fade.

"Don't worry about your classes, most of the teachers are pretty cool," Honey says as she scans my timetable. "It sucks that we don't have all of the same classes, but at least we have homeroom and alchemy together."

"Yeah and Sunday nights are really good here. You're allowed to get the food as a takeaway to your dorm so that you can just chill. You put through your order on the school app and food will get delivered about seven," Irene informs me.

I download the school app and scroll through the options. Although vampires drink blood, we eat human food, too.

To be at our healthiest and strongest, we have a combined diet. Vampires who solely drink human blood tend to be more aggressive and animalistic. They're usually nomads who don't contribute to society. We can only go about a week or two without blood before we desiccate.

I order my food and close the app. The girls put the TV on and choose a movie for us to watch whilst we have dinner.

It's a fun evening. I text my parents to let them know that I'm settling in just fine. In all honesty, I'm still nervous. This was the easy bit. Tomorrow, going to classes and being stared at for being the new girl, that's the hard part.

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My alarm goes off at exactly 7AM. With a groan, I drag myself from my bed and into the shower. The hot water helps wake me up and I step out feeling refreshed. I dry and straighten my hair. When I'm done, I do my make-up and change into my uniform. It's pretty basic and not too bad.

Short, pleated skirt. Burgundy blazer. White shirt, black tie. Socks or tights, I went with knee-high socks because the weather is still warm. Plus, they look cute with my Mary Jane shoes.

My hair is white. Not platinum blond, but pure white. Vampires naturally have any type of hair colour or eye colour. My mother, for example, has purple eyes. Mine are a really deep red, most people mistake them for brown. They look redder in the sunlight. At school I was teased for looking like a more tanned version of the main character in iZombie.

I don't mind how short my hair is. It dries quickly and is a lot less hassle. I don't know how Honey copes with hers coming down to her waist.

When I'm ready, I swing my backpack over my shoulder and come out of my room. The other girls are already up and eating toast in the living room. I butter myself a couple of slices and join them.

"Homeroom first and then business studies. Do you know where you're going?" Esme asks as she looks at my timetable.

"Yeah. I found the room on the map."

"Awesome. We'll meet up with you at break in the quad, okay? We can regroup and tell you all of the gossip."

I smile at her. "Sounds good."

The bell goes at half eight, signalling that it's time to go to form. The corridor fills with girls in matching uniforms to me. Honey takes my hand and leads me through the crowds.

We get to an old-fashioned classroom. The interactive whiteboard looks out of place with the panelled walls and wooden desks. Honey pulls me into a chair next to her at the back of the classroom. A young, female teacher walks in and logs into the computer.

"Good morning, form!" She greets us with a wide smile. "Second week back, you've got this!"

"That's Miss Nicholls. She's really nice, don't worry," Honey whispers.

Miss Nicholls takes the register and then puts on a news clip for us to watch. It gives us updates on the vampire world and the human world.

Vampires, Lamia, are the dominant species, obviously. But we live in near peace with the majority of humans. There are hunters and people who resent our existence, of course. There are more humans than vampires in the world. Hunters attack vampires and work to decrease our numbers. I have had too much experience with hunters in my life, they are a sore topic for me.

Humans can volunteer to donate their blood to us, but many of us survive from drinking from animals. If you have a mate, you can survive from their blood, too.

Mates are a serious topic for us vampires. We can choose our own mates usually. Vampires normally date for a few weeks or months before completing the mating ceremony and then the mating bond.

However, occasionally, vampires have their mates chosen for them by The Gods. We don't have a specific deity that we worship, but the gods that we have give us messages about our lives in the form of prophecies.

Every vampire has a prophecy about their life. It is one of the main events for a new vampire at Whitlock Academy. You usually receive your prophecy when you are sixteen. I am a year late in receiving mine.

If you have a mate chosen by The Gods, you will find out when you receive your prophecy. You will not choose your own mate because one has already been chosen for you. My parents, for example, chose each other. But Honey's parents were prophesied to be together.

Just before the end of form, Miss Nicholls comes over and hands me a slip of paper. I open it and read the message.

Miss Emery St. Cloud needs to report to the alchemy building, Room 72 at 11 o'clock today to receive her prophecy flame.

At secondary school, we were taught all about prophecies in preparation to go to the academy. The first step of receiving your prophecy is to receive your prophecy flame. It's basically a yellow flame that you hold your wrist over. When the flame touches your skin, you receive a tattoo.

The tattoo will be pale pink at first, like a scar. After a week, it will turn a specific colour, that indicates that you are ready for the second part of the ceremony.

The flame will change to one of four colours straight away. The colour represents what kind of prophecy you will receive in the second part.

If the flame turns blue, you will receive a power with your prophecy. Some kind of control over an element. If the flame turns green, you will be gifted with the capability to communicate with animals, usually one species in particular.

If the flame turns red, you will be given a mate that you are destined to be with. There is no rejecting your chosen, it is impossible. And finally, if the flame turns black...your prophecy will either depict your death, or the death of others that you will cause.

Many vampire warriors have the black flame tattoo. It shows that they are the bringers of death, which isn't always a bad thing if they are protecting our kind. But, sometimes, the prophecy tells you precisely when you are going to die. This is usually because your death will have purpose or meaning.

I am seriously hoping the flame doesn't turn black for me.

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