It had only been yesterday since my mom went missing.

My dad had woken up to see that she wasn't in bed. He didn't worry, thinking that she got up early and was probably eating breakfast in the living room.

But he searched around the house and couldn't find her anywhere. He woke me and Rachel up in a panic, telling us about everything, and we were equally scared.

My dad called the police, but they said they couldn't do anything until she was gone for forty-eight hours.

And since today was September, it was time for school. Dad said it would be good for us to go to school, to take our mind off of Mom's disappearance so as not to worry.

But I didn't exactly agree.

And to make matters worse, we were heading to a new school. Our friends wouldn't even get a proper goodbye.

"Lukas! Are you even listening?"

I snapped out of my thoughts.

We were on a school bus, with a bunch of other students chattering away. Rachel shook me by the shoulders.

"Okay, okay! I get it, I'm listening now," I said, before she made me get a concussion.

We both had raven black hair, bright violet eyes,  and wore our own fair share of dark, muted colors.

"I'm really nervous and excited for this school year!" She said with a giddy smile. It was clear that she was more excited than nervous. I just rolled my eyes.

"Really? You're gonna forget all about our other friends?" I said. That wasn't the main reason. But I couldn't bring it up. I just couldn't.

Rachel's smile faded into a sad one. She knew I wasn't talking about the old friends - but she played along anyway.

"I'm not forgetting about them - I'm just trying to keep this subject away. To lighten the mood." She said.

"That's basically the same thing."

"Lukas. She'll be safe. I know she will."

Those words hurt me, cut me deeper than ever before. Because this time, I didn't know if that was true or not.

Rachel seemed to notice how much pain it caused me because I turned to look out the window, my body tensing. She put her hand on my shoulder.

"We can get through this together. All of this will work itself out. I promise."

I never replied. Because we both knew that was a promise that she couldn't keep.

*Time Skip*

The school came into view into the distance.

The other students were gawking at it, which just made me roll my eyes. It was just a school.

But fine, I'll describe it.

The walls were made from quartz, the sign for the school made from platinum and silver, the front doors from pure gold. It had carvings of every element - fire, water, nature, ice, dark and light.

Okay, I guess I understand now.

The doors magically opened, and my eyes widened. I'd never actually witnessed any magic before, so this was startling.

My parents didn't have any magic. That's why I were so worried about Mom.

The bus parked, and we all got off the bus.

A stern looking teacher was at the front steps to the palace-like school, and, following the others, we stepped in front of him in two lines.

The teacher had slicked back brown hair, aquamarine robes, and polished black shoes. He wore glasses with a black frame, and I could swear for a moment that the glass flashed a bright blue color before quickly fading away.

He walked between the two lines, squinting and staring at the top of our heads - and... occasionally sniffing someone's ear...?

"Alright, now that it's been confirmed that there have been no trespassers or intruders, my name is Professor Columbus. I will be the new students' guide. If you have any questions about directions, how to submit homework assignments, or just some historical information about the school, you can talk to me." He said, his voice as disgusted as his facial expression.

"Of course, for historical information, I'll only feed you the basics. I am not an excuse for you not to go to the library yourself and request a book on the topic."

A few of the students groaned. Because heaven forbid they have to read.

"Now, follow me. I'll be giving you all a tour around the school. And now I must say - you must be confused as to which Elements you are. Well, your parents filled out your application form. In that form, they tell us what Element you are." Professor Columbus said. "I'll direct everyone to their Elemental homerooms after the tour."

And just like he said - he gave us a tour around the school. But it wasn't anything too flashy, it was just the same marble floors, quartz walls, and golden doors.

The good thing, though, was that this wasn't a boarding school - Dad wouldn't have to lose us too. And plus, the place was pretentious.

After the tour, me, Rachel, and the other Dark Elements in the group where ushered over to a black gold door with the symbol of Dark.

The other Dark Elements opened the door.

The room had concrete walls with portraits of famous Dark Elements; and it was a bombardment of witches, warlocks, and sorcerers.

The ground was black marble, the tables and chairs made of ebony wood. Instead of normal lights, lanterns with purple flames lit up the room.

A woman with purely white hair pulled tightly into a bun sat behind an ebony wood desk. She wore black robes made from dragon scales.

"Sit down." She said. Her voice was surprisingly deep, like a boy's. I noticed a lot of other students gaping at her.

"Did I tell you to gawk at me? Sit down right this instant!" She said. Everyone instantaneously st down, not wanting to anger her more than they already had.

"Ahem. My name is Professor Deanne, and I'll be the respective teacher for Dark Element. I will teach you all of the classes mandatory for Dark Elements, while the headmaster himself will teach classes for all elements." She said, glaring at all of us. "And if you're wondering why my voice is so deep, that's none of your business."

"Well, it does make her more intimidating, so I guess that helps." I heard a student whisper. The teacher should've been able to hear that, but she instead ignored it. Probably because it was a compliment to her.

"Now, since it's the first day, no one gets any homework or classes. Instead, you must get used to the layout of the school, and... perhaps you can make friends too. But as a Dark Element, it is not advised. If you grow soft, your dark magic may not be as powerful as it should be."

Well, I'll be going against that if it includes twins. Rachel and I are sticking together no matter what.

The bell rang.

"Class dismissed." She said. All of the students immediately got up and shoved each other out of the way.

"No shoving. Dark Elements are disciplined and certainly don't pick fights without valid reason. People like you are the reason the Dark Elements are seen as evil." Professor Deanne said, glaring at them.

The students instantly stood up straight and stopped shoving others.

After we headed out of the room, Rachel headed over to me.

"So... let's go explore! And make friends!" Rachel said giddily.

"But Professor Deanne advised against it. Besides, we have each other." I said.

"Yes, we have each other - but you know what happened last week! We have different interests and likes, and we'll drive each other crazy if we don't get to meet someone who has things in common with us." Rachel explained. I sighed.

"Alright - I'll be heading to the cafeteria if you need me." I said. Rachel nodded.

"Off to the library I go!" Rachel said with a grin, and walked away at a brisk pace, occasionally skipping.

Remembering the tour from earlier, I walked along hallways and climbed up staircases to the cafeteria - and it was massive.

Countless tables and chairs, a buffet table to choose which dishes you wanted, and all types of elemental people mingling together. It was filled with the happy buzz of chatting, and I knew at least four or five tables had to be gossiping about newcomers.

I headed over to the buffet table, but I noticed how people of different elements than mine would get out of my way - except Fire Elements. It was known to everyone that Fire Elements were fearless and were powerful against Dark Elements.

I carefully made my way around the Fire Elements when one of them deliberately stepped in front of me.

I tried to move out of the way, but he did it again. I knew a fight was bound to happen.

"Excuse me, but I'd like to get through, please." I said. The Fire Element looked a little startled that a Dark Element was polite, but tried to hide it. Luckily I do a pretty decent job in reading people like a book so I could tell.

"Filthy Dark Elements like you don't belong here. They only cause suffering and pain for others. It's a wonder why this school even takes Dark Elements." He growled. I glared at him.

"Isn't there a better place for shooting insults at me? And why the sudden outburst?" I asked, staring him down. I had a feeling that I'd made a mistake.

Internally wincing, I pushed past him, getting a little burnt at the fingertips.

I could feel his deathly look on the back of my neck, but I ignored it. I hadn't even made it to my first class and I'd already gotten an enemy.

I knew there was bound to be trouble in the future.