After the welcoming speeches were over, staff stepped forward to guide the students down from the bleachers. They all wore forest green t-shirts with Rosewell Academy written on them, and a crest in the middle. The forty or so students were gathered and split up into four groups. Lauren made sure to stick near Thalia and Adam, since so far, they were the only friendly faces she knew. This was all still a bit overwhelming. Lauren had never been around so many people, especially so many her age. Being herded into a group gave her a sense of claustrophobia. She clutched her hands together and tried to breathe steadily.

  The three of them were grouped with four other new students, two girls and two guys. They each seemed normal enough. Lauren couldn’t tell what their powers were just by looking at them, at least.

  One of the girls was tall and seemed very serious and studious. She wore thick glasses, and her light brown hair was short and coiffed back towards the nape of her neck. Her clothes were modest and in drab colors.

  The other girl in the group new to Lauren was medium height, and also a brunette, but dressed almost completely opposite from the other. She wore flowing, colorful clothes and had a happy expression. Her hair was loose around her heart-shaped face, and she had a small mole on her cheek. She made eye contact with Lauren and smiled. Her eyes were a brilliant emerald green.

  The two guys were already having a conversation as they stepped into the group. One was tall, blonde, and wore a white jacket over a blue shirt. He was very conventionally handsome, and he looked like he knew it by the way his eyes roamed over the girls in the group, including Lauren. The other was shorter, with short black hair and brown eyes.

  The staff member who gathered them together introduced herself as Michelle and said they would be beginning their tour starting in the east wing of the school. Lauren’s tour group peeled off from the rest of them and headed to the far end of the gym, through one of the double doors that led into the school.

  They found themselves in a hallway lined with classrooms, which Michelle started explaining the purpose of each. Lauren initially kept pace with Thalia, but she was engaged in the tour and making comments with Adam. Lauren didn’t want to seem too clingy beside her, so she hung back a bit.

  She ended up falling in step with the girl dressed in colorful clothes. Her shirt was covered in dazzling tie-dye designs, and her skirt looked homemade out of different bits of fabric. She smelled like wind travelling through a pine forest after it rained. Lauren didn’t even know a person could smell like that.

  “I… like your outfit,” Lauren said.

  The girl beamed. She seemed eager to talk with someone.

  “Thank you!” she said. Her voice was light and sweet. “It’s all thrifted or made from scratch. It’s kind of a hobby of mine. I’m Lucy! Lucy Kane.”

  She stuck out her hand.

  Lauren shook it. “Lauren.”

  She thought about saying Boone with it, but didn’t. She hadn’t thought about having a last name in years. She didn’t even know any other Boones besides Rachel.

  “This is all pretty exciting, huh?” Lucy said. “I’m from here, the Pacific City area. I grew up in Ursa Valley, so I didn’t even have to move too far to come to superhero school. Are you from here? I can like, totally be your guide to the area. I know all the cool stuff to do.”

  “I’m not,” Lauren said. “Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “Hey folks,” Michelle called from up ahead, “I love that you’re all eager to meet each other, but let’s make sure you’re paying attention for now, okay? There will be lots of time to socialize later, and you’re going to need to know where things are for your first week.”

  The various conversations died down. The tall studious girl, who was the only one walking alone, gave a clear disapproving look to the rest of the group.

  Lucy turned back to Lauren and smiled.

  The tour continued through classroom halls, through a few lab rooms, the school’s cafeteria, and eventually outside. They passed the other tour groups roaming around. There was an outside activity area including a climbing wall and a track, a courtyard with seating and a fountain, and trails to walk through nature. They finished the tour at the dorms. Nearby the building there was a volleyball field and a gated pool.

  When they arrived, Michelle looked down at her clipboard and told each student their room numbers. Lauren learned the tall girl was Abigail, the handsome guy was Kenny, and the shorter guy was Jonas. Lauren and Lucy were both assigned to room 7.

  “Roommates!” Lucy cheered to Lauren.

  Thalia was in room 5, and Adam in room 2. No one else in the tour group were roommates with each other.

  “You’ll have the chance to check out your rooms in a moment,” Michelle said. She gestured to more staff sitting at a booth in front of the building. “Tell the nice folks there your name and they’ll hand you your keys and class schedules. There’s just a few things to go over…”

  Michelle started reading statements on safety protocols, curfew, and checking in. As she talked, the other tour groups began arriving and got the same speech.

  “...We at Rosewell Academy recognize that you are all young adults who wish to go out and explore the world, and we wish to give you the opportunity to do so. With that being said, curfew is 10 PM on weeknights and 12 AM on weekends. We ask that while off campus you use the SafeCape? app to check in with staff at least once an hour, on the hour. Use of your powers for heroics or otherwise is strictly forbidden while off campus unless it is during a pre-approved and instructor-guided routine or patrol. If you witness criminal activity or danger while outside of campus, we expect you to act as a responsible civilian and alert the authorities once you are safe. Failure to follow these rules will result in your roaming privileges being revoked. Let’s hold ourselves and our peers accountable, and thank you for helping us keep you and the public safe.”

  Roaming privileges. Lauren didn’t like the sound of that. She wasn’t about to promise to keep the search for her sister confined to pre-approved hours. She looked over to Lucy next to her, listening attentively. A guide to Pacific City could be useful. Not that a suburban girl would likely know the places criminals hid out in. Still, she might be a good starting point.

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  “Tonight, if you feel like eating communally, which we encourage you to do so, the cafeteria opens at 6. It’s going to be a taco fiesta! Yum. At 7, the lounge will be opening for a student mixer. Come join us for non-alcoholic cocktails at the hottest club on campus! Enjoy stunning views of Pacific City during sunset as you get to know your fellow students. Classes begin at 8 AM sharp tomorrow, so be sure to save some energy.”

  Michelle looked up from her clipboard. “And with that, thank you for being such a wonderful tour group today. I hope I’ve helped you begin to feel at home here at Rosewell. Let’s get you checked in.”

  The group broke up and got in line at the check in booth. Lauren must’ve been in their system by now. She got handed her keys with no issue. She followed Lucy to find room 7. It seemed to be on the second floor of the dorm, up a flight of covered stairs on the outside of the building.

  Lauren stopped at the bottom of the stairs and watched as Thalia found the door to room 5. Adam was still beside her.

  “Meet you guys at the cafeteria? Or do you want to just meet at the lounge?” Thalia asked the group.

  “Tacos sound good to me,” Adam said.

  “Sure, I’ll be at the cafeteria,” Lucy agreed.

  Lauren gave a thumbs up.

  Apparently Lauren now had a friend group. It was a lot easier than she expected. Today was just full of new experiences.

  Lauren and Lucy went upstairs. The door to room 7 was just down the outside hall a way. Lucy did the honor of opening it.

  They stepped inside.

  “Wow…” Lucy said.

  Lauren agreed. The space was huge for a dorm. Beyond the entry area was a living room with two recliners, a couch, and a loveseat, all around a coffee table and facing a flat screen. On the other side of the main room was a sliding door leading to a balcony. A bar counter separated the entry area from the kitchen. Lauren walked around it. The kitchen was spacious as well. It had a brand-new oven, fridge, dishwasher, and all kinds of gadgets on the counters, the most mundane of which was a microwave. She opened a set of white cabinets. Inside were plain, neatly stacked plates and bowls. There were more kitchen gadgets in other drawers. Others were for food storage. So far, they just contained basics, such as flour, sugar, and rice.

  Lauren opened the fridge. It was similarly mostly empty, except for some condiments and fruits and veggies in the drawers. When she closed the door again, she noticed a paper notepad hanging on a magnetic clip. At the top it said Grocery List (Fulfilled Weekly). A pen was also attached to the clip.

  Lucy wandered in and opened the cabinets.

  “This is great! I can do so much baking here!” She turned to Lauren. “What’s your favorite kind of cookie?”

  “Uh, chocolate chip?” she guessed. That seemed like a normal answer, from someone who got to choose the kind of cookies they had available.

  She wandered back out of the kitchen. A short hallway between the kitchen and living room led to a set of four doors. She looked at her key. It said 7B.

  She found door B and unlocked it.

  Her room was plain, but just as nice as the rest of the apartment. A bed with a full-size mattress, already made with sheets and pillows, rested in the corner by the window. Next to it was a nightstand with a lamp and her new phone sitting on top. There was a wooden desk with a rolling chair, on it a computer monitor with the PC tucked away under the desk. A dresser was opposite the desk, near the nightstand. Near the foot of her bed was a door that must have led to a bathroom.

  She walked into the room and had to turn around to notice the closet with sliding doors. Lauren went to the dresser first. Inside the drawers were new shirts, pants, leggings, underwear, socks, and more. She slid open the closet door. There were more tops, dresses, and outerwear. As she went through the closet, she noticed there was one piece that seemed to be different from the others. It was a green canvas jacket that was hanging apart from the others. She took it off the hanger.

  The jacket was big and hoodless, with a brassy zipper and a wraparound collar that could be buttoned in front. Four big pockets covered the front of it, two on bottom and two on the chest. The top right pocket was unbuttoned. She reached inside and found a piece of paper. She unfolded it.

  I’ve been holding on to this jacket for a while. I thought I’d leave it here while the staff did finishing room checks. It used to belong to a friend. He’d want it being put to good use. Don’t feel like you have to use it. I just thought it seemed like your style.

  Hogan

  Lauren set the note down on her nightstand. She took off her hoodie, threw it on the bed, and tried on the jacket. It was a bit big on her. The hem went past her butt, and she had to roll the sleeves up. She looked at herself in the full-length mirror hanging on her door.

  The jacket looked surprisingly good on her. It felt comfortable too. It was only when she was viewing it in the mirror did she notice the patch on the left shoulder. She stepped closer to get a better look at it.

  The patch was a shield-shaped emblem. The main design on it was the head of a black wolf in profile, its eye solid red. The top of the emblem said HELLHOUNDS, while the bottom read Impii cognoscent nos.

  She had no idea what it meant, but the design was cool. She decided to keep the jacket on for now.

  She started to hear voices coming from beyond her door. Lauren went back out into the hall. Lucy was talking to someone in the living room, another girl. It must have been one of their other roommates. Lauren entered the room, seeing Lucy chatting with a blonde girl.

  They both turned to Lauren. The new girl was… dazzling. Her long blonde hair was full of volume. She had sun-kissed skin, bright blue eyes, and teeth that looked like they could blind in direct sunlight. She wore carefully ripped skinny jeans, heeled boots, and a white top with stars and stripes on it that was small enough to show off her flat stomach and her quite not-flat chest. She grinned with a look that seemed rehearsed for public appearances.

  “Hiii!” she greeted. Her voice was twangy and dripped like honey. “You must be Lauren! Lucy here was just telling me about you!”

  She stepped forward and offered a cupped hand with manicured nails painted red, white, and blue. “I’m Grace Ayers.”

  Grace didn’t particularly seem to want a handshake, so Lauren only touched her hand with a few fingers and moved it up and down slightly.

  “Lauren.”

  Grace looked between her and Lucy.

  “You two look so fun to live with. Ahh! This is exciting. We’re gonna be like college besties, but in high school. We’ll have to do pajama nights, go to the salon together, tell each other all the gossip…”

  Already Lauren could tell Grace was the type to have a performance for a personality. It was clear from her curated look, to her twangy Southern charmer voice that was just a bit too put-on. She just seemed artificial, unlike Lucy’s natural enthusiasm.

  Grace jumped mid-sentence from something behind Lauren. She turned. Standing behind her was another girl, who must have been their fourth and last roommate.

  “Goodness me, you’re quiet!” Grace said.

  The girl standing there had striking hair, a deep crimson color. Locks of it framed her face and the rest was gathered in a loose ponytail. Her eyes were dark, almost haunted-looking. She was thin and pale, with bow-curve lips. Her hands rested in the pockets of a white hoodie, which she wore with matching white sweats and white slip-on shoes.

  She stood there for a moment, watching the three of them.

  Grace cleared her throat, bringing to attention the awkward moment.

  “Well, hi? I’m Grace, this is Lucy and this is Lauren.” Grace started talking slower, like the last girl might have a hard time understanding her. “What’s your name?”

  The redhead seemed irked by Grace, judging by the grimace on her face.

  “Harper,” she said in a low, husky voice.

  “Well, hi Harper,” Grace continued in her tone for small children. “We were just—”

  Harper turned around and walked back to her room. Her steps were silent. Even the closing of her door seemed muted.

  Grace stood there and blinked. “Oookay. Great. I can tell she’s not gonna be very popular…”