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Menopolis Academy.

The name alone made me feel cold and abandoned. I had the sudden urge to duck behind one of the many clusters of bushes scattered around the terrain. Any cheerfulness and tranquillity I'd felt before seemed to have disappeared, and I wondered if it had been there at all.

Everywhere I looked there were teenagers, assembled into unambiguous groups, talking and laughing and possibly gossiping.

What if they're talking about me?

I gripped my elbows as I pulled my arms closer to my body. Of course they weren't. How could they know that a new girl, a Hybrid, had just enrolled at their academy? An academy that was unquestionably more like a mansion than a school. There was no impression of spiteful teachers and their bored, sterile lectures. The place appeared elegant, somewhere you wouldn't find a jock stuffing a nerd in a dumpster or a crowd egging on a cat fight.

This was a place redolent of something even more bewildering, more intimidating than being the new girl at an ordinary school. These students, teenagers, looked civilised.

I was feeling awfully exposed in the open, lost like a puppy. I wished I were a puppy; people wouldn't mock a puppy. There was nothing too different about the academy from any other school, except that maybe the Academy looked more appealing than any school I'd seen. There were still those giggly girls that made no secret that they were checking out the small crowd of boys by a particular patch of trees. The boys were slouching against the trees as if they didn't have a care in the world. A small amount of them was actually attempting to make conversation. Then there were the less noisy teenagers who were actually communicating effortlessly. Some were even talking enthusiastically, gesturing wildly as they spoke, those around them listening quietly, with an occasional nod or shake of a head. An even more isolated cluster was smoking, several already smothering their finished cigarettes on a tree. Instead of throwing it casually on the ground like other people–humans–might do, they took the effort to walk to a brick structure I assumed were for trash. Then they would return to their tree and pull out yet another cigarette.

The group of girls I'd first detected laughed again, and I found my gaze drawn to them. One of the girls was leaving the group. Her friends were pushing at her and were gripped in a fit of giggles when the girl started towards the little crowd of bored boys. I didn't want to be caught staring by anyone, especially not the ridiculously boisterous girls, but I was too transfixed by the girl's confident steps–lively yet outlandishly graceful.

Even from this distance, I could see her chocolate brown hair as if it were a blinking neon light. I couldn't detect what about her made her so conspicuous, sticking out like a blond within a sea of brunettes, even though she was a brunette herself.

I blinked. Was that a skirt? Seriously, if that could even be passed off as a skirt, it looked more fitting for the underwear category.

Some things never change.

One of the boys departed from his group. He'd been one of those who bothered to strike up a conversation with the others. All I could make out was brownish hair, but I knew he had to be hot because he and the girl glided into a close embrace.

"Trust me, you don't want to see what comes next; it's scandalous." I should have anticipated someone sneaking up on me. It had become highly likely that people here loved to do that, even strangers. So like an idiot, I yelped and whirled around, aware of a few bystanders staring at me. And was continuing to stare as I composed myself and focused on the person who had startled me.

Suddenly, all I saw were dimples. "Sorry, I'm Shelly."

When all I did was gape at her, a seemingly harmless girl with long, curly bronze hair, who was dimpling at me, her smile faltered a little, and she made a little frown. "You are Alexandra, no?"

I blinked and managed an unsure smile in return. "No, I'm Alex."

The girl's grin widened. She didn't question my clipped response or why I had the cheek to correct her. "I'm Shelina, your appointed servant, at your service." She made a sweep with her arm and bowed.

"Servant?"

She laughed. "Stop being so serious, would you? In that case, call me Shelly."

My spine relaxed a little at her humour, but I was still very much aware of people gawking at me shamelessly. "Splendid to acquire your service then, Shelina." So this was the girl Kylon had been talking about...

Shelly surprised me then by punching me lightly on the shoulder. "Hey, I didn't pledge my services just so that you would accept them. Most people would scowl and walk away."

I chuckled. "Well, I'm not most people. But it seems I am the one everyone's scowling at, not you."

Shelly glanced around as if taken by surprise by my statement and looking to confirm it.

"Don't mind them. They just haven't seen someone like you..." Shelly's sentence faded, and she shot me an apologetic grimace as if her words should have been offensive. She quickly started again. "Just ignore them. Unfortunately, they forgot that they're actually Athlans and not fish.'

I suddenly laughed. I didn't know what was funnier, her serious face or her words. Either way, she was just as astonished as I was to hear me laughing.

"Now there's the smile I've been looking for all morning! I have to ask, how was thy tour of that splendorous palace of thine?"

I frowned at her, still smiling, in puzzlement. I couldn't remember the last time I'd been this amused by someone other than Kylon.

There was the sharp sound of someone whistling, and I, along with a few of the other students, turned to the sound. The bored boys were all alert now, all staring at the couple I'd noticed before, shouting and whooping.

The guy was carrying the girl in his arms now, kissing her sloppily as he strode to the side of the building, disappearing into the shadows.

And the man carried his wife over the threshold, I thought with disgust.

I must have said it aloud because Shelly stepped closer and shook her head. "You could say that again. Only, this must be the fiftieth honeymoon they've taken on academy grounds. It's like they're bunnies, though that would be insulting the cute little buggers." She shook her head again. "That's Mia and Aiden, probably the most known on-and-off couple of Menopolis." Shelly's voice was still cheerful, but I thought I heard a trace of contempt in her tone.

Still looking at the place where Aiden and Mia had disappeared, I said, "So, you like poetry or something?" Even though she sucked at it...

It was so easy to talk when it was Shelly, so carefree. As if she were a magnet of consolation that drew the stress from my body. And she didn't call me Alexandra, so we were going to get along just fine.

"Oh, heck no! Don't even put like in the same sentence as poetry. It's gross!"

"Gross?"

She grimaced. "Okay, so gross is a little exaggerating. But really, I don't understand riddles, it confuses me. And to top it off, it's all supposed to be cloyingly romantic and tragic. Gah!" Shelly threw her hands theatrically in the air.

"You're very anti-romantic," I observed.

"Not anti-romantic, just realistic. However, your guess wasn't too far either. But none of that now." She grabbed my hand and thrust her arm through mine. "Tell me about the palace."

She started leading me towards the mansion–academy. The building looked nothing like the marble palace; it was built of brick and cement, though it still looked like it came from another era. It reminded me of a classic European manor. Flowers were bedded in front of the building, further augmenting the dissimilarity to a place of learning. A balcony hung over the front steps like a small roof.

"Don't you know...?" I was too conscious of all the eyes on me to finish my sentence. It was like having a dagger pricking your skin. I glanced around and shivered. Maybe I'd been wrong all along–perhaps they did know what I was.

Every student I passed fell silent and openly watched me, almost as if they hadn't seen a human before. Or a Hybrid. I mentally clawed the word out of my head. I had to stop thinking like that; I thought I was supposed to be over that already.

No. No one would be able to get over the fact that they were a creature they'd never known existed, had been one all her life and just found out her true identity. No. Any person that was okay with that was not normal. So why should I accept it?

Because there's nothing you can do about it, I thought sourly. Even if there was the option, they wouldn't let me off the island. Kylon implied as much.

But that didn't give others a reason to judge and stare at me like this like I was some kind of freak. Honestly, I couldn't see anything different between Athlans and humans, except that maybe all of them were mildly attractive, with some barely conspicuous flaws. Was it because of their god blood?

Shelly started walking faster, and because of our interlocked arms, I had to force my legs to walk faster or risk having my shoulder dislocated. Maybe she wasn't the type who loved to be in the spotlight, and supposedly, I should have been used to it.

"Sorry," I mumbled without thinking, staring up. We'd finally reached the steps that lead to whatever educational world was behind those doors. Shelly stopped at the foot of the stairs and released me, looking at me with resolution.

Apparently, she knew why I was apologising. Her tone was light, but her words weighed a tonne. "Alex, I told you they're like cows masticating their own intelligence instead of their stupidity."

I smiled a little at the silly comparison. "Actually, you said they that they are like fish." Her imagination and the way she expressed it was bizarre and... interesting.

Though I was surprised when Shelly didn't smile, her expression solemn. "Cows, fish, pigs, it doesn't matter. You're just different because you're a Hybrid." Her eyes apologised for the word. "Well, in their case, you're different because, well..." She looked me over, her eyes lingering on the places where my skin was exposed.

"What do you mean?"

Suddenly, Shelly looked puzzled. "I mean, I know you look different, but I don't care. I like you very much already."

Look different? What the hell did that mean? I didn't see anything different between her and me. A weight started to rest on my chest. Did she mean I wasn't as attractive as the rest of them? I could feel the last of my battered self-confidence slip out of my fingers. I bit my lip to keep from looking down at myself, restrained the urge to run my hands through my hair.

There was a sudden click from the massive academy doors, and after a few seconds, it opened swiftly inwards.

"That's our queue," Shelly announced.

What, no bell?

"Come on," my new friend urged. "I saw what human schools are like on the internet"–wait, they have internet?–"and I swear, your schools are so foreign and boring."

I wanted to ask what she meant, wanted to remind her that everything resembling school was achingly boring. Instead, I pursed my lips to keep the words locked inside. I didn't want to be foreign, didn't want to be more of an outsider than I already was. Because there was no doubt that these kids were going to think I was weird when I complained about school. The fact that I was already anticipating their reaction kind of pissed me off. These people weren't human, and if I understood correctly, as jumbled as my mind was, they had no origin or trace of human blood in them. Except for Hybrids.

Following Shelly up the steps, I took a deep, cleansing breath. The air here was noticeably cleaner and fresh, with a hint of salt that probably came from the ocean. There were no noises from cars and no city lights. I closed my eyes, my breath still locked in my lungs, as I entered the academy. When I opened my eyes, the air raced out of my lungs.

I stepped into a vast entrance hall, and I scanned the space from within a sudden throng of bodies, with people moving into three dizzying directions. I couldn't see above all the students; most of them, particularly boys, were towering over me, and, of course, I flinched away each time someone touched me. My heart missed a beat when someone nearly walked right over me, and the student mumbled a palpably shocked apology.

Someone was tugging my sleeve, and I tried to jump back but only ended up with an angry curse when I bumped into someone.

"Alex! It's me, come on. This is not a place where you want to get separated from me. Follow me."

It was Shelly, I realised with guilty relief, and I grabbed her outstretched hand. I let her lead me out of the blind chaos. The crowd was slowly dissolving to a size where I could see a few feet in front of me, but I still got the sense of being blind.

Colours and material swirled everywhere as we passed numerous more students before Shelly, with a jerk, steered me to the side and against a wall. We must have passed through one of the three directions the students had split up in, and teenagers were still walking through what I could now see was a high archway.

"Phew, that took a toll on my limbs. I hate moving through all those headless chickens with only the onslaught of my hands and legs to shove and kick myself through. I'm really considering getting myself a broom. It would be so convenient to smack their heads out of my way and to sweep them off their feet." She paused and then looked at me with a somewhat amused face. "I hope you learned your lesson. I understand that you want to stare, but I advise you to do it either during lunch or after class. That way, we won't have to battle and tumble like we just did." Shelly made a gesture by wiping away invisible sweat on her forehead.

We watched as the population split and angled into various locations, disappearing into rooms that lined what I could now see was an immense hallway. The floor was rested with black wood, a staggering contrast to the pale wood panel walls.

It reminds me of chocolate, I thought vaguely. It looks like Top Deck.

"I usually don't take this route, as it's the longer route, but at least we still have five minutes before the doors close. Come!" Shelly beckoned me to follow her, and I scrambled to keep up with her pace as she walked down the hallway and turned into another one on the right.

"Do we have the same classes?" I wondered aloud. I hadn't really thought about it before, but now that we were actually heading towards our first class, worry pulled at my nerves.

I nearly jumped when Shelly laughed. "Of course we do! The queen made sure of that. She always gives special attention to new Hybrids by giving them the support of the children of their guardian families." There was no animosity in her words.

"So there are others here? I mean, Hybrids?"

She laughed again. "Of course there are! Maybe not as many, but they aren't extinct in this school."

"How many are there in existence, then?"

My question seemed to catch her off guard. She blinked a few times, and for a moment, she seemed uncomfortable and reluctant to answer. After a long pause, she said, "Hybrids are a small race, a consequence of the Law. Though some of us slip up."

"You mean, Hybrids are forbidden?" A sick feeling settled in my stomach.

Shelly sounded grim. "Not necessarily Hybrids themselves, but it is forbidden for Atlans to... to propagate with humans, as it is considered unnatural. That's why they are so... uncommon."

We arrived at a flight of stairs at the end of the hallway, and we scaled it quickly. The second floor was similar to the first, but here I could distinguish a difference in décor. Potted plants decorated the space, and modern paintings and pictures of normal-looking adolescents adorned the panelled walls.

I thought about Shelly's words as she hurried down the hallway. Did she really mean that interracial relationships made Athlans unnatural, or was I misinterpreting her meaning? Were Hybrids unnatural? Was I something that shouldn't exist?

Shelly stopped at a door nearly at the end of the hall. Like the other doors, it was open, but I'd been too absorbed with my growing depression to discern the blurry figures inside of the others. As Shelly started to pass the threshold, I dragged her back. It had taken us only three minutes to get here, so I had only two minutes left to get rid of my panic.

Shelly raised an elegant brow, but there was complete understanding from the way she smiled at me. "It's okay," she reassured. "It may be a little strange, our customs, but you'll get used to it quickly. I know that others did."

She means other Hybrids, I observed suspiciously, but I let her lead me into the class.

Only, it wasn't a class at all, but a large cleared out chamber with a high ceiling and diamond-paned windows on the far wall, almost walls themselves. From them, I could see the Academy's lawn, and beyond that, a forest. The trees stretched for kilometres beyond, rising and falling rapidly with large hills. And in the far distance was the palace, glittering in the sharp, warm sun like glass or cut diamonds.

I pulled my eyes away from the view to the room I was now standing in, with Shelly already moving towards a spot. I froze for a few moments, and in the span of a few milliseconds, I roughly surveyed the room before I followed her.

The room was big, as I'd perceived earlier. But it wasn't something I would have expected to treat as a place of learning. No desks, no chalkboard, not even books or writing supplies! Instead, leather couches stretched around the room in a circular arrangement, some students already sprawled across them while others stood between them.

But there are only ten of us, I observed. Surely, given the large crowd I'd seen downstairs, there should be much more.

There were enough couches for each individual to sit on alone, and some people were doing just that, propping their legs on the couch and lounging as they conversed. It was a bizarre picture, something that looked more like a big group of friends spending their leisure time together. Like a sleepover, only with couches instead of sleeping bags.

Shelly waved from a couch she had claimed, and I hesitantly went to join her. The couch sunk from my weight, and it felt like I was sitting on a pillar of feather pillows. My muscles unwound, and I leant my head on my hand, my elbow resting on the couch arm. This could not be school.

Sensing my amazement, Shelly grinned widely and shifted her weight, tangling her legs underneath her. I remained in my current position.

"What did I tell you? Seeing those awful desks on the net, I couldn't believe humans provided their education so uncomfortably for nearly an hour."

I shook my head as if to agree with her. But the truth was, this was all so strange, and I almost missed my old school's cruel seats and graffiti-drawn desks.

"I'm having fun already," I admitted and realised as I said the words that they were true. Excluding my homesickness, I really was enjoying the relaxed atmosphere of the room. And people weren't staring, at least not openly, which was a bonus. However, I still caught some people glancing over at me.

The sound of a slamming door silenced everyone, and they all scurried towards their own seats. A respectful silence wrapped around the room like a coat, you could almost tear through it. A woman walked towards the centre of the room and stood within the circle. She crossed her arms in front of her in the shape of a cross, pressing it against her waist so that her fists balled at her hips, palms inward.

She twirled in a circle and caught everyone's eye. When her eyes settled on me, she held my gaze for a second, and then she followed the line of my neck, my arms, and the rest of my body before meeting my eyes again.

She smiled suddenly. "Seleste, Alexandra."

I must have looked truly shocked because someone muffled a snicker. Shelly was suddenly whispering in my ear. "Another custom. It's a respectful way of greeting someone for the first time, though I don't know what the word means..."

The woman's voice continued for Shelly when she trailed off. "It means 'I recognise you.' It's a word of the ancient Atlantean language that was not forgotten, and it has been custom from the very beginning because we recognise each other for our blood that flows through our marked veins. We all came from the same womb, even if it varied through time.

"Welcome, Alexandra, to your blood and the arms of the land that would always envelope you with reception."

Everyone was gaping at me now, some noticeably shifting in their seat to study me overtly. Murmurs revolved around the circle of students like they were exchanging secrets. Except, there was no secret now. They probably knew I was a Hybrid. I glowered at them.

The woman–Decennia, as Shelly just whispered when I asked–released her hands from their small fists and let her arms rest on her narrow hips. She was a slender woman, shorter than I was, and very pretty. She wore her strawberry blond hair in a complicated tangle of swirls that sprouted out of a bun. Her blue-grey eyes were sharp and warm at the same time, her lower lip thicker than the upper one, painted in red lip-gloss. She wore a tight-fitted knee-length red dress and high heels that didn't make her short body more prominent, though she held up her spine so proudly that she seemed taller.

I wondered what the boys–four, I counted quickly–thought about her. I was shocked to see Aiden, the one who'd been kissing the girl earlier, among them. I wondered if any of the girls were admiring the woman like I was. I stole a peek at Shelly. She was sitting perfectly still, but I could practically see the veneration shining in her eyes.

This wasn't going to be some regular, tedious lecture.

Me again. Did you like the chapter? What do you think about the school? Shelly is a sweetheart, right? I can't wait to introduce you to the other main characters.

Any ideas why Alex looks different? Stick around for the following chapters to find out...

If you liked the chapter, consider giving it a vote and comment? I love hearing from you guys! :)