Ashes and Stardust

Next morning, Eve woke up early, as today marked the official orientation for the new semester and the beginning of the classes. The previous night, Cece had mentioned that there will be an assembly in the main hall located in the north wing. All students were required to gather there before breakfast so that the orientation could begin early.

She felt well rested, having had no strange dreams about the man whose eyes matched that 'rude man' she had bumped into yesterday. After having a refreshing bath, she put on a pastel pink gown that hugged her perfect figure. She braided the top section of her hair, letting the rest of her long, beautiful locks fall freely behind her. With two medium sized diamond studs adorning her ears, she looked lovely.

After taking one last look at herself in the mirror, she stepped out of the room. At this hour, many other students were making their way to the main hall. Eve tried to find Cece or Damien amongst the crowd but couldn't.

'Maybe they left early or maybe they are yet to step out', she thought to herself.

Upon reaching the main hall, she noticed it was large enough to accommodate at least a thousand people. Massive pillars lined both sides of the hall, supporting the structure, while big arched windows let in soft morning light inside. Five grand chandeliers hung from the high ceiling, casting a warm glow to the place. At the far end of the hall, stood a podium at the center of the four-steps stage. Students, a mix of vampires, lumen and humans were already gathered in front of the stage. They appeared from all three academic years. 

As Eve stepped in, she immediately drew attention to herself as always with her otherworldly beauty. She took a couple of confident steps towards one the lines when a man, who looked to be in his late thirties stepped in behind the podium. He wore a light brown tailored suit, had sleek brown hair and little dark red eyes. 

He spoke in a commanding voice," Welcome to the Blood Moon Academy everyone."

His gaze swept across the hall as he continued, "I am headmaster Charles Blackwing, and I am pleased to welcome you all as we strive to elevate this institution to a new height. I expect each of you to conduct yourselves with discipline throughout your term and follow academy rules. You will be expected to learn together, regardless of what race you belong to. 

Since it is the beginning of a new semester, those who were not present last semester will be paired with returning students in a buddy system, allowing you to catch up quickly and become familiar with the academy's structure and expectations."

"Now I would like to call Professor Dante Bonesnap to come forward and start announcing the names. Thank you" 

With that, he stepped aside and let a tall man with long blond hair that reached his shoulder stepped up the podium with a parchment in his hand. He had purple eyes and a kind smile on his face. He wore a white shirt and beige pants, looking perfectly at ease.

Grinning like he had won some blood sacrifice, he began "Hello everyone, my name is Dante Bonesnap. You can all call me Dante and I'll be your Inter Species Relations teacher." He flashed a thousand megawatt smile, one that screamed 'friendly neighbourhood psychopath'.

He continued "Now I will be calling out names one by one. When I announce the pair please step forward. Don't be shy, this is the beginning of a beautiful forced partnership."

As he started to call out the names of students, Eve scanned the hall. Some students clearly lumens and humans wore expressions of quiet dread, like prisoners waiting for their cellmates to be assigned. Others, mostly vampires, had a smirk plastered on their faces as if they couldn't wait to find out who they'd be emotionally damaging for the semester. 

Eve then felt an intense stare burning into her from far left. She snapped her eyes in that direction, and that's when her eyes locked with him. The very same rude and infuriatingly gorgeous man she had bumped into the night before. Her heart skipped a beat. 

He was leaning against one of the pillars of the hall in casual elegance impeccably dressed, looking both regal and cold. Yet there was something else in his eyes. They watched her unblinkingly, filled with curiosity. And as if he heard her heart skip a beat, he tilted his head ever so slightly and raised a single, devastatingly arched brow. The corner of his mouth twitched, not quite a smile, but enough to send a chill down her spine.

A light blush slowly formed on Eve's cheeks, and she quickly averted her gaze. Suddenly, she heard her name being called "Princess Evelyn Lumaeth Starforged, please step forward." 

She felt her whole body seemed to turn to stone, every limb filled with anxiety as her pulse spiked but she showed nothing on her face. She knew vampires could probably hear her thunderous heartbeat, hell..even she could hear it. She gracefully made her way to Prof. Dante and turned face to the sea of students.

'Holy mother of gods!' she screamed in her mind as every single eye mixed with different shades of red and other colours were fixed on her. 'Just why did I have to make eye contact with them?!' As she tried not to faint or run for the hills, her internal panic made her miss hearing her assigned partner's name.

Then she heard it, clearly this time when his name was repeated.

"Prince Ivan Ignia de Ashen, you will be paired with Princess Evelyn. Please step forward."

Sound of crisp, deliberate footsteps echoed against the marble floor, cutting through the silence of the grand hall. All heads turned in unison, to catch a glimpse of the infamous Prince of Versailles. Evelyn followed their gaze, her eyes widened in pure disbelief. It felt as if the ground had vanished beneath her feet. 

Blood drained her face when she realised that the very man she had bumped into yesterday and cursed relentlessly in her mind, was the same dangerous prince. In her head, he might as well have been the Prince of Underworld.

He came to stop in front of her, tall, regal, exuding an air of arrogance and to her utter dismay, drop-dead gorgeous.

His molten red eyes locked onto hers, amusement dancing within them, as if he could see right through her and was savoring every bit of her distress.