I walk to morning class feeling utterly exhausted and can barely keep my eyes open. The teacher smiles at me when I walk in and I sit down at my desk. Kate told me to fail every class. Even if the royals don't punish me, I know our family will get a bad name if I get myself expelled.

Getting the chance to come to the academy and learn about healing spells was something I didn't know I needed this much. I feel more socialized, more content in general and alive. Even if I'm still half dead. If I get expelled, I lose all of this. I won't be able to fulfill my end of the deal with the prince and that means he'll tell his father. I can't tell Kate about my deal with the prince because I know he'd want me to keep it a secret. Just like he's keeping mine.

I can't fail my classes, but I can at least keep my performance average. I just won't tell her.

Class starts and everyone is now here. For some reason I feel everyone's stares on me more today. The teacher grabs her notebook and starts going around asking everyone's performance. Jacelynn sits down next to me, catching by surprise.

"Are you fitting in." she asks.

"I'm getting use to things." I say and she sees me looking around nervously.

"You're not imagining it." she admits and I look at her confused.

"There's a rumor going around that you hid yourself away because you didn't want to come study at the academy and fulfill your role as a vampire of the kingdom. Apparently you're lazy and think you're better than everyone else because your mother is Rosemary Thornhale. Now everyone wants to know why you and your mother haven't been punished yet." She raises her eyebrows.

A sudden rumor? But who could have started such lie? The conversation with the boy from yesterday comes back to me. Could it be him?

The teacher approaches my desk and Jacelynn stands up walking back to her desk and joins a conversation with the another student.

"It's time for me to ask you about your performance and write it down to the royals." she gives me small smile. "How have you been doing in class?" she turns to a new blank page of her book.

"I'm starting to understand healing spells."

"That's good." she writes it down. "And how's practical?"

"I haven't been able to create a spell yet." I sigh.

She nods and writes that down too, asking me a few more questions. The bell rings for first class, I grab my bag and walked through the halls. Almost everyone is staring at me today. Not just that, they were talking about me and I could hear them. They didn't even bother to hide it from me. Jacelynn wasn't lying, there is a rumor going around. I feel self-conscious and uncomfortable as I walk alone. Managing to avoid everyone I sit down in the right side of the classroom. It begins shortly after I've sat down, luckily the boy from yesterday isn't here.

"A bit of history today. As everyone know, a few decades ago we had human villages in our realm. The realm was split into two, they had sun and we had the moon as our source of light. Back then all vampires could regenerate and heal themselves. Until humans used a drug to slowly poison themselves and the entire kingdom drank from them. The poison was transmitted to us and we lost our ability to regenerate. That's why you're here today learning healing spells to heal others through the use of magic. Something we learned from the witches." He explains, walking around.

I listen intently. I didn't even know humans lived in this realm, less born here. I've always thought this realm belonged to the vampires and that our blood source came from the human realm. How much don't I know?

The lecture continues and I write everything down in my notebook. The bell rings for break and I leave the class, keeping my head down as I pass through the halls. I feel a powerful presence, one too familiar and lift my head to the window, seeing the royals standing outside. The princess looks annoyed at the prince. They're talking and I was curious to know so I take the stairs and go the entrance closets to them. I stop moving scared they'll hear me spying. When the royal prince is alone with me he doesn't feel as intimated as he does right now.

"What are we doing here?" I hear the princess complain.

"Not we." I hear him walking on rocks. "You followed me out of the castle." he says sternly.

"You've been at the academy every single day for the last three days. We don't see you at the palace anymore. So yes, I'm following you. You're causing trouble again and I know it," she says.

Students walk down the stairs and I sprint away before anyone can see me. What was I thinking. I shouldn't have listened in to their conversation. That was so wrong. I could've got in so much trouble.

I walk to the break room and search for Sera. This time she's already seated and at the table with Aster with an open book in front of her. I guess I'm the one late this time. I approach their table, feeling the glares on me as I pass all the other tables. I pull out a chair and sit down, startling them.

"I didn't think you'd show up with the rumor going around." Aster speaks first, sipping blood.

Sera glares at him, slapping him on the shoulder and he almost chokes. "You never know when to shut up. Can't you see she's already uncomfortable as it is?"

You almost killed me." he coughs.

"I will if you don't learn how the shut the fuck up." She spits.

"Come on we both know you're the one who never shuts up."

Sera lifts her hand to slap him again but he moves his chair away from her. She rolls her eyes and finally looks at me.

"Don't worry about what others are saying. You don't look like someone who would pull a scheme like that. I'm sure you had a reason." she tries to reassure me and slides a cup over to me.

"Cheer up. I bought you a blood beforehand." she smiles.

"You really didn't need to." I say softly.

"You think I'd let you starve?" she raises an eyebrow and fold her arms over her chest. That's 'the thing. I won't starve. I can go days without needing to drink blood. But I appreciate her kindness so I take it and drink it. When the cup is empty I look at her book on the table.

"Does the Academy have a room full of books somewhere?" I ask.

"You mean a library? Yes, we have but no one uses it anymore, it's almost completely abandoned at this point. It's on the top floor. Why? Do you want to read about our lore and stuff?" she smirks.

"Yes something like that."

"I heard the view is gorgeous, you can see everything from up there." Aster joins in on the conversation. Well now I can't wait to go the library. It doesn't just have more books for me to check out but has a gorgeous view too. I feel Aster's gaze om me and when I meet his eyes he asks.

"Tell me Nadeline has a boy asked you out yet?"

Asked me out? Not exactly understanding what he meant by that I say. "Uh... No?"

He smirks, leaning back in his chair. "Well remember I'm always here." he winks.

Sera looks up from her book disgusted at what Aster has just said. "Nadeline doesn't want you." She shoo's him away." Go bother some other girl. Sorry I meant girls." She gives him a fake smile.

He sighs, pouting. "You're always so mean to me."

A while later, break time is over and I walk past the place where I saw the royals, they're not there anymore. Going to practical, I greet the teacher with a nod and sit down. We waited for everyone and then she tells us to continue with what we were doing yesterday. Healing a part of the plant and not the entire thing with a small spell. I was already disappointed and upset with myself and know I'm going to struggle again and waste this period.

Is it even possible for someone like me to possess magic, I'm only half vampire? With a sigh I remove the glass and stare at the almost dead flower. "I should at least give it another try." I mumble to myself and put my hands over the flower.

Magic.

Heal.

Flower.

I repeat those 3 words in my mind, while looking at the other students. Most of them have created a healing spell and was already healing the flower. While others seem to have used to much magic and killed the flower. I wasn't the only one struggling, but at least they can create a spell. I can't even to that.

The teacher rubs her hand over her face and look at those students in disappointment. Then she sees me watching them and approach me. "No healing spell?" she asks.

"I can't create a spell." I say looking down at the table and resting my face in my hands.

"Both your mother and sister can create strong spells. You share the same genes. Maybe you should just approach it differently." she says.

"Differently? How?" I ask, frowning.

"Is there something you enjoy doing? Maybe something that gives you a strong emotion or what your good at using your hands for? A few years back there was a student in my class who loved to crochet. She used her crocheting skills to heal by imagining the wounds closing with strings of magic. Maybe there's something you can do to help you heal easier since you're already comfortable with that skill."

"I'll leave you to figure it out," she leaves me by myself, letting me think about it and goes to another student.

Being around others gives me a strong emotion, panic. Unfortunately, I don't think that can help me. As for something I like doing and is good at. That would be drawing. I stare at the flower then at my hands, my black nail polish was almost completely off. I'll have to fix it later. I think about how I can use drawing in my magic. Maybe I can imagine it as drawing and using my finger to sketch it as already healed, similar like that student did.

I breathe in and close my eyes. concentrating on getting into the right mindset before vividly imagining drawing the flower and using my finger as the pen. I move my finger across the flower, feeling its soft texture. My body get warmer and feel a bolt of electricity moving down my arm. I open my eyes and see my magic immediately disappear. It was weak, a thin layer of almost invisible smoke. But it was there, I saw it. My lips form a smile. It worked, I do have magic after all.

It's a start. Now I just have to learn to heal.