Fallon and I spent hours laughing in our room well past time for us to have been asleep.

She was actually super funny. Plus, every time a boy would walk by us in the meal hall she'd suddenly clam up and go totally silent until they walked away, then she'd fire right back up and start obsessing over which guy she was going to date.

We met the other girls and guys in our group and I was surprised at the age differences. I was the youngest being only nineteen, but there was a woman in our group who was forty two and a guy who was twenty six. They seemed nice and like maybe our group outings around Castrum wouldn't be too bad.

When it came to the conversation about Lance and Dalton, I kept it short and sweet.

I explained to Fallon that though Lance and I have definitely got some history and I've known him forever, we haven't ever taken our friendship past that. The last time I'd seen him before he made the change we'd almost kissed on the pier at the lake but the moment passed. Since that we've spent like five minutes together, all of which he was pretty forward about holding my hand and putting his arm around me.

"Cleary he is being handsy because he wants his intention known." Fallon told me as we laid in our beds late last night. "He isn't leaving any room for you to doubt it. He totally wants you."

I'd tried not to let that soak in too much. The last thing I wanted was to start overanalyzing a relationship with him on my very first day here. I'm not here for that. I'm here to learn about where I come from and to make a final decision on what I want to do when my birthday comes and I can officially make a choice about whether or not I take the change.

"What about the other one?" Fallon had whispered as I was falling asleep. "The broody dark eyes and that body, my oh my." She giggled softly in the dark.

I'd been quick to shut that down.

"You have no idea." I told her. "He is a major jerk."

"The hot ones sometimes are."

I nodded. "Well, this one is literally like...he totally hates me."

"Why does he hate you?"

"I don't know...he just does."

A long while went by without a word, then right as I was at the edge of consciousness she whispered again before rolling over in her own bed.

"He can say whatever he wants, but his eyes tell a different story." She yawned before we both fell asleep.

"WAKE UP!" Dalton's deep baritone shakes me from my dreams.

"Would it kill you to be polite for once in your life?" Lance's voice flitters through the room too.

"Honestly, the two of you bicker like a couple of brothers." Pedro sighs and I snap my eyes up and sit up in bed. "But a little subtly wouldn't kill you Dalton."

All three of them are standing at the foot of my bed. Pedro in his standard blue suit, Dalton dressed in a slick black t-shirt and dark cargo pants with boots, and Lance has his blonde hair tied back and a black guard's uniform on with patches on the breast pocket that signify his rank.

"Good morning, Rosie." Pedro smiles and I toss the blankets aside and jump down from the bed to run and give him a hug.

Fallon stirs in her bed, opening her eyes to see them and then she jerks beneath the blankets with a gasp. "Oh my god." She mutters in embarrassment. "I can't believe we over slept."

"That's ok, dear." Pedro tells her while he hugs me to him then kisses the top of my head. "I know my Rosie can be quite the talker. She has always been bad about getting to bed on time, and even worse about getting up on time." He winks at me.

"We have a schedule to keep." Dalton crosses his arms over his broad chest and frowns. "Hit the showers and get ready to go, you've both got breakfast in a half hour, then class, then I'm in charge of your outings for the first half of the day, Lance will take over for the last half."

I nod, not wanting to piss him off.

"Pedro, I thought you were spending the day with me?"

The corners of his mouth droop down and he pats my shoulder. "That was the plan but I've got to see to some things."

"What things?" I inquire, raising my eyebrows.

Pedro smiles and shakes his head. "Nothing to worry about, but while I'm thinking of it, you haven't told your parents about the little disturbance here last night, did you?" He asks anxiously.

"Of course I haven't." I assure him. "I'm not trying to get sent home already. Plus, Lance explained it was just some people who wanted to come in but that we had to turn them away."

Pedro glances at Lance for a second and then nods to me. "Yes, well, still best that we don't worry mom any more than she already is." He laughs. "Go get ready, enjoy your day, and I will see you for dinner."

Pedro turns on his heels and strides out of the room.

I watch the door for just a second before I remember that Dalton and Lance are still waiting. I peek a glance at them and find them both staring at me, but then they both not so smoothly look away like they weren't just looking. I look down at my body and then groan as I rush into the bathroom.

"Oh, um, I'll see you later!" Lance calls before he leaves too.

I hadn't even thought about the fact that I was just wearing a low cut black tank top and pair of mini cotton shorts I like to sleep in. They aren't exactly appropriate for company.

I wait in the bathroom for Fallon to follow but when I peek out the door I see Dalton still standing in the same spot, his arms crossed, waiting.

I was about to tell him to go away for a while so we could get ready but then a super pretty girl with smooth wavy brown hair stuck her head in.

"There you are." She smiled sweetly and for a second I was totally confused thinking she meant me, but then Dalton turned to face her, dropping his angry stance. "I've been looking for you."

"I told you I was working until three." He tells her in a rush.

I walk out a little and half wave at her. "Hey, go ahead." I tell him and the girl smiles widely. "Fallon and I need to get ready so you have some time."

He narrows his eyes at me. "You're sure you can manage not drowning in the shower or-."

I hold up my hand to silence him. "I won't electrocute myself with the hairdryer, or choke on my toothbrush either."

The girl laughs in the doorway. "You're hilarious." She says, then looks at Dalton expectantly. "Come on, she'll be fine. She seems very capable."

"Thank you." I nod to her. "Now go." I point at the door and he finally sulks off to meet who I can only assume is his girlfriend that Lance had mentioned earlier.

As soon as the door shuts, Fallon jumps from the bed in her pajama gown and runs over to the door, holding up a finger to her lips to tell me to be quiet. I wait patiently while she listens, then she rolls her eyes and drops her jaw.

"What?" I whisper, and she pulls me into the bathroom and shuts the door.

She makes a sour face at me before she walks over to the shower and runs the water for me. "I don't like that girl."

"Why?"

She frowns as she comes back over to me. "I only could hear some of their conversation-."

"You were eavesdropping on him?" I gasp and she shrugs.

"She told him that she still can't believe that he's being wasted by having to keep up with you for Pedro just because you're his niece." She rolls her eyes again. "She basically tells him he's too good to be stuck with you."

I look down at the stone floor. "Oh." I mutter. She'd seemed nice, but I guess to be interested in dating Dalton you'd have to have something wrong with you. "What did he say?" I mumble as if I'm not really that interested in knowing.

Fallon shakes her head and points at the shower. "He agreed." She says. "Now hurry and shower, and don't use up all of the hot water."

"Of course he did." I roll my eyes as she goes back out into the main room to pick me out something to wear.

I take a quick shower and then brush my teeth and then let Fallon blow-dry my long hair.

"I wish my hair was this color." She sighs when she's blown it out completely straight and smooth. "It's so pretty and unique."

I laugh a little. "Thanks." I smile at her in the mirror. "It's like a mix of my mom and dad." I say running my hands down the long light golden brown strands. "It has a reddish hue in the sunlight." I tell her.

She turns me around and narrows her eyes. "Did you notice the way both boys were ogling you earlier?"

"Shut up, no they weren't."

Dalton waits out in the corridor for us when we emerge, finally done getting ready.

"You missed breakfast." He huffs, turning his back on the group of girls down the way who couldn't stop staring at him. "You both get a muffin to eat on your way to class and I don't want to hear a thing about it. Just walk, this way." He says after passing us the food and Fallon mimics him when he turns his back, making angry faces and mouthing what he had said. I can't contain my giggles when he turns back suddenly to make sure we are following and catches her. "Do we have a problem?" He asks us both as we try our hardest not to burst into a laughing fit. Instead we both just shake our heads vigorously and he rolls his eyes and heads up the path, taking a right past the meal room. "Go to class, girls." He sighs at the door, holding it open for us while we go in ahead of him.

The room is small, an electronic board set up in front of the twelve desks that are lined up just like a real classroom. To the side a short dark skinned man with a shiny bald head stands behind a podium, narrowing his eyes at Fallon and me as we enter late.

The other four people in our group already sitting in their desks waiting to begin. I had to admit I was a little excited for class. I liked school, until I was old enough to start having to deal with annoying people, and I was always really good at it. I skipped a grade twice and had the choice to test out of school early but I'd decided to stay just for the experience. At least this class would be things I actually have a passion to learn about.

I took the seat closet to the teacher that no one else seemed to be brave enough to go for, Fallon sitting in the one behind me, and Dalton leaning against the back wall by the door.

"Now that we are all present," The man calls us to order even though the room is so quiet I can hear Fallon fake breathing behind me. "My name is Master Malrod, I met a couple of you this morning in breakfast, others missed that as well." He cuts his eyes to me and frowns. "This is your first course in vampirism. Some of you may already have good knowledge on what we are going to cover from other friends or family, some of you might be learning this all for the first time. Wherever you fall in that, these classes are mandatory and vital in educating you all on the decision you may choose to make in the near future. I expect respect, and I expect your attention." He sighs, pointing his remote at the board and it hums to life. "Let's begin with our histories."

I lean back, kicking my shoes off under my desk and pull my feet up into my seat and listen intently. Master Malrod starts out with a discussion all about how vampires came to be.

"Our earliest proof of other vampires comes from as far back as the Bronze Age, but we theorize it may have been even sooner than that that we came to be." He explains. "Many theories exits on where exactly we came from, from a rare mutation of rabies that spread rapidly, to even more harebrained ideas about magical creation, regardless, here we are." He flips to the next slide and the screen is filled with gruesome images of bloodless bodies left in the middle of villages and men covered in blood, an evil lust in their eyes. "Our earliest ancestors were known for their brutality, lack of control, and utter barbarianism. They killed without thought, they left messes. They were unorganized and quickly made a mess for themselves. Humans searched for ways to rid the earth of our existence, hunting parties searched us, ready to do whatever they had to do to stamp us out." The next slide is a painting of an older man, deep wrinkles, grey hair, and a nose that didn't quite fit on his squinted face. "It wasn't until Fandello Marquise that we began to ban together, no longer working as single hunters like tigers, but as a pack of lions. Marquise spoke out every chance he had about a new way of life for us. A place we could exist without constantly looking over our shoulders. Fear of the humans had grown stronger and stronger as time went on and they discovered juniper and a mad doctor who we will discuss in another class created sickness that wove distrust in even our own kind." The next slide is a small city, only two buildings and a small pond, but I recognize the area nestled in a valley between two huge hills. "We broke ground on Castrum de Petra under Marquise's advisement and he became the first sovereign king. It took hundreds of years to reach completion, but he had been right. We've been here and under the ground of every other major country ever since."

I could see it all in my mind, the ugliness turning into something beautiful. Castrum de Petra is a symbol of vampire's growth from monsters of the night, to actual people again. When given a little thought, there really isn't much reason we have to be so different.

Class droned on and I could tell that the others were getting antsy as they constantly shifted and fidgeted in their seats, but I was completely enthralled in the lessons, excited to call dad tonight and talk about it all with him.

After two hours, Master Malard shuts off the board, resting the remote on the podium.

"I know this is a lot all at once, but it is important information to have if you decide to go forward with your exploration of our world and ways." He folds his hands and sighs. "As humans yourselves, the hardest thing to wrap your minds around is the most important thing of all and I strongly encourage you give this a lot of thought when making your decision, but humans are here to serve us." He says bluntly. "People you knew before coming here, humans you'll meet afterward, they will always be below you and are no longer at the same level of worth as you. For us, humans become food. That's the plain and simple truth of it. Humans exist to keep us alive and to help us reach our fullest potential as beings. If you make this decision, you are effectively turning your back on the humans to embrace your new existence. Their only purpose is to strengthen us."

I can't believe the tone he is using, and the way he is spreading all of these lies like they're facts. Without a second thought my hand shoots up into the air. "Excuse me?" I interrupt.

He narrows his eyes and blinks slowly in annoyance. "Yes?"

"That isn't exactly true anymore." I point out, anger flickering over his face. "That may have been what you had to teach years ago, but things are different now. There are alternatives. It doesn't have to be an us versus them thing anymore." I only go on when he looks like he is about to lose his cool on me. "Without humans, there would be no vampires. And you want to talk about longevity, humans are the ones who are keeping this world going and keeping all of you alive. Not the other way around. To say that we are better than them and more important is actually just kind of dumb and not true. Vampires actually bring no real worth or use to the world, so to say we are more important...? I just can't agree."

He pulls his lips back angrily and I hear some gasps from my classmates.

"That is the way it is, and you should wrap your little brain around it because until you do you will never be one of us." He says heatedly. "Humans are here to feed us, end of story."

"You're wrong." I disagree again, the room going silent again. "Humans are here to be humans and live their own lives and have families and exist, just like we are. They don't owe us any service. What have we ever done for them to deserve their submission?" I pause, but only for a moment. "They aren't here to feed us, never were, but even more so now. There is alternative ways to live for vampires now. The invention of synthetic blood was groundbreaking. We can live harmoniously. No one has to be better than the other. We just both exist."

Malard slams his fist down on the podium. "You are disrupting my class and I will not have it!"

"By stating the facts that you don't seem to either be aware of or willing to share with these people?" I fire back. "You owe it to the students you teach to tell them the truth about all of their options. Not just your favorite. Even for the people like you who want to drink real blood, there should be another way to do it. Plus, you're standing here acting as if your civilization is so much better and more advanced than the human one, yet you are the ones who still support slavery and are fine with the kidnapping of young children? I mean, come on. Things need to change, and they are, you just clearly don't want to see it."

"You can get the hell out of my class!" He snarls angrily, the podium splintering where he squeezes the sides.

I begin to shove on my shoes in a huff when I hear Dalton's angry voice boom from the back of the room. "You're kicking her out of class for stating an opinion that differs from yours?" He demands, looking to me and waving me to come on. I walk to his side and he nudges me towards the door.

"This class isn't about opinions, Sir Dalton, it is about educating these people on the choice they want to make." He says respectfully even though you can still see the anger in his eyes.

Dalton nods. "Exactly the point she is making." He tells him and I can't deny how surprised I am that he is actually defending me. "You would do well to learn from your students the same way that they learn from you. Also, you are required to educate on other feeding methods. Update your syllabus by next class or get a new job."

"Yes, sir." He says in defeat and Dalton pulls me along at his side.

"Come on, Rose, let's go."