Knight of the Black Rose

by Nissa Gordon

  As they walked up the corridor they looked into the cabins for an empty one and one big enough for them all, but they were all pretty big; most of the first few cabins already had a few students in them, so they carried on until they finally found an empty room about half way along.

  "This should do," Alex announced opening the door on his left and going inside first, with everyone else following.

  They all went in to the cabin, comfy seats lining the facing wall with a large window that at the moment could only see fog, there was also two tables at either end where there were also more seats on the other two walls; along the wall they had just come through were cupboards so that they could store their cases, and then in the other corner was changing rooms.

  Libby stopped at the threshold. "Wow..."

  "It's massive; do you think that they're all this big?" Jessica asked just as impressed.

  "Probably," Lucy answered as she dragged her case over to the cupboard, squeezing it along the bottom; well none of them could actually lift them.

  "So now what?" Alex asked as he went over and sat down in the corner, with Will and Troy on either side of them.

  Jessica looked at Lucy to see where she wanted to sit, and then at the other two girls, she wasn't going to sit down first and not next to them. Lucy seemed to get the idea and went over to sit next to Troy, seeing as none of the others were doing it, and it wasn't as though she was bothered about sitting next to them, she had known them all long enough; as soon as she sat down, they all followed her.

  "The ship doesn't leave for a while," Selena said.

  Lucy leaned forward so that she could see Will. "How come that guy thought that you were a girl?"

  "A guy thought that you were a girl? When? Where? How did I miss that?" Troy asked angrily.

  "I met him when I was buying my books...and I don't know why he thought I was a girl," Will said annoyed.

  "It's because he has long pretty hair," Libby whispered.

  "It is pretty, and longer than any of ours," Selena agreed.

  "So...the hair doesn't mean that I look like a girl," Will argued, he liked his hair the way it was and had never had that problem before, so still didn’t understand why that lad had thought that he was a girl.

  "Well according to that guy, who can't tell the difference, it must..." Lucy said and then added thoughtfully. "You know, some guys actually suit long hair and in some cultures it's even fashionable,"

  "What cultures?" Libby asked confused, making them all look at her and then at each other as though they knew something that she didn't; and well they did considering that they all come from magical families. "What?"

  "Are we even allowed to say anything?" Selena asked.

  "According to my dad, no," Lucy answered.

  "Your dad says you can't tell anyone anything," Jessica complained.

  "Maybe we should wait," Will agreed.

  "Yeah, they'll probably tell everyone at school," Alex said off handily. "Good job my dad doesn't know everything or he really would be freaking out,"

  "I still can't believe that he's acting like that, he's known what you and your mum are your whole life," Lucy said annoyed.

  "It's different for you, you've spent your whole life around them, hardly having any contact with non-magic’s," Alex told her.

  "I'm from a mixed family, and we're best friends," Jessica pointed out. "Oh...and there's Ella...she's not from a magical family,"

  "See, I do have friends back there other than our own kind," Lucy said nodding in agreement, even though she knew that she didn't really have many.

  "Err...well...is there a lot of people I mean with powers...?" Libby asked. "There seems to be...I mean with how many are going to this school; and then how many there were at...err....was it Witchchester Square? I know my mum and dad keep saying that it's all over the news and everything...but...no one really knows how many people there are."

  "They'll probably explain things like that at school," Selena told her.

  Libby seemed confused. "So...err...even we're not allowed to know everything?"

  "Like Selena said, they'll probably explain everything at school...we just don't know how much we're allowed to talk about," Lucy told her.

  "We've always been told that it's a secret...one thing that we can't talk about...always..." Will told her.

  "Oh...okay..." Libby said feeling a little left out.

  Lucy lent forward and smiled at her. "But don't worry, as soon as they say it's alright, we'll tell you anything that you want to know...I mean...well as long as we know the answer,"

  "Okay...I guess," Libby said.

  There was a crackling noise over head and then a man’s voice boomed through the speakers. "I want to welcome all the students of Burnaby Advanced School of Magical Arts aboard the Fatum. Hatches are now closing with everyone aboard, departing a little earlier than normal. We are hoping to arrive in the Open Bay Village at roughly 17:30hours local time; travel time itself is only an hour and half. We aboard the Fatum hope that you all have a pleasant journey."

  Libby looked at her watch confused about the time and the length of the journey.

  "See, that's why I've already been up for hours," Lucy said to the boys. "It was kind of weird just waiting around, for you lot it was easier...you just had to roll out of bed and then you were here,"

  "We haven't actually been up that long." Jessica added. "Well I haven't,"

  "I don't get it..." Libby said.

  "The schools on an island, magically protected so no one can find it," Selena explained.

  "You do know that he just said that we're going to one of the villages on that island, there's three," Lucy told her.

  "So they did tell you something," Troy said annoyed that she lied to them, and that she didn’t tell them what she knew.

  "They didn't tell me that much...big deal...villages...I'd rather know about the school," Lucy told him. "I read some of that book about it, but it isn't the same; and it doesn't tell you how you get into the estates,"

  Troy was saved from saying anything to her when the horns above deck sounded three times that they were pulling out, they all jumped up to look out of the window hoping that the fog would clear up so that they'd be able to see where they're going.

  "What's with the fog?" Libby asked them.

  "It's protection," Lucy answered. "Dad said it's thicker this year, because we've somewhat come out into the open...and they don't want anyone knowing how we all get to school outside of the magical community,"

  "Did you practice that?" Troy asked her smirking broadly.

  Lucy smiled back at him. "My dad told me what to say if anyone asked, yes,"

  "My dad said not to say too much," Will told them.

  "So there's magical jobs you can get as well...I mean after we leave school?" Libby asked them.

  "Of course there are," Selena answered as though this was obvious.

  "That will be explained at school as well, in the higher years," Lucy told her.

  "Stuarts only got a couple of years left," Will told them positively; even though they were family they didn’t get on at all, actually they simply just didn’t like each other.

  "So has Jake, they're in the same year right?" Lucy asked.

  "Yeap," Will answered.

  "You have a brother as well?" Libby asked surprised as this was the first time that he had mentioned him.

  "Cousin," Will told her.

  "I still can't see anything," Troy complained as he turned around and flopped back in his seat.

  "I hope it clears up for when she passes through to the island," Lucy said as she turned back around.

  Libby jumped down excitedly, she wanted to know something about the magical world that she was going into, there had to be something that they were allowed to tell her. "Pass through what?"

  Lucy considered answering her question; she didn't really see any harm it as she was going to see it soon enough anyway. "It’s kind of like a protective barrier,"

&
nbsp; "That's so cool," Libby said excitedly as she climbed back up on the seats. "When do you think that it'll happen?"

  "Probably when we're a little further away from the coast," Selena told her.

  "Oh right...yeah...that makes sense," Libby said turning back around and taking her seat like the others. "Do you think they'll tell us when it's going to happen?"

  "They normally, I mean when you travel to other places," Lucy told her.

  The next hour they spent their time answering as many of Libby's questions as they thought that they would be allowed to, though considering that none of them knew that much about the school itself, they couldn't really answer everything. The horn sounded again, but this time only once, startling them all; the crackling sounded again before the man’s voice came on over head.

  "Clearing of the fog, we approach the gateway to Narganse and then straight onto the island of Veil of the Unseen. We will be docking within half an hour of going through the gateway, and suggest that if you haven't already done so, change into your school uniforms."

  "What sort of name for an island is, Veil of the Unseen?" Libby asked as she and the others climbed back onto their seats.

  "I told you, there's a protective barrier around the island, so no one can see it unless they're given permission," Lucy told her.

  They all watched as the fog began to clear around them and they could see the ocean and the clear blue sky for the first time, as they watched the water begin to shimmer as they approached what appeared to be some sort of large clear transparent wall. The ship sailed right into it, the ocean below them was no longer the only thing that was shimmering, everything around them appeared to shimmer and to go slightly out of focus for a moment and then everything shifted back.

  "Oh my god, what was that?" Libby asked looking around nevrously.

  "That never gets old!" Alex shouted excited.

  "That was the gateway," Selena told her.

  Libby didn't really understand what she meant, but as she looked out and then up into the sky that was suddenly darker, she realised that it wasn't completely the same colour either, she had never seen anything like it before. At first she thought it was a sunset, but the colours were so different to that of anything she had seen before, unless that's how it was supposed to be different parts of the world, which she didn't know because she hadn't really travelled that much.

  The sky was blue with strikes of different shades of red and purple, and the ocean was a lighter shade of blue, almost crystal; Libby was sure that she had never seen anything so beautiful before.

  "This is Narganse where I live," Lucy told her.

  "Actually, we kind of live between here and there," Jessica told her.

  "You make it sound as though this is a completely different world," Libby said staring out at the new view.

  Lucy got down off the seat not answering her question, Jessica quickly followed as they made their way over to their cases; she wasn't going to waste any time since they were going to be arriving soon, and she so wanted to put on her new uniform.

  "Did you see the estate uniforms, they're so brilliant...better than any of the other schools," Lucy said as she pulled her case out and lay it flat so she could open it.

  "I know, so cute...no matter what colour they're using," Jessica agreed.

  "So where are we getting changed?" Selena asked.

  "That's simple, there's more of us," Lucy said pointing at the changing room. "The guys can go in there,"

  "That isn't fair." Alex complained.

  "The four of us won't fit in there and if we take turns it'll take to long," Lucy told him as she stood up with her uniform in hand. "This way is quicker,"

  "Why does she always get to decide?" Alex mumbled as he got his own case out.

  "Probably because she’s always right," Will answered.

  "Don't tell her that, we'll never hear the end of it," Troy told them and quickly looked over his shoulder to make sure that she hadn’t heard them.

  The boys got their uniforms and then went over to the changing rooms, the girls quickly changed as well and then put their other clothes back into their cases before they would allow the boys to come out; then they stood their cases back up again with a bit of a struggle considering how heavy they all were. They were all now dressed in their school uniforms, dark green Chinese style jackets and trousers with black shoes.

  "How come these ones don't have skirts?" Jessica asked looking down at herself. "I don't normally wear pants,"

  "I don't mind really," Lucy admitted as she sat back down next to Troy.

  "That's because you're just one of the lads," Troy told her.

  "What do you mean?" Libby asked, but the horn sounded three times and then crackling before the man spoke.

  "I want to welcome you all to Veil of the Unseen, we're just coming into the port and will be docking shortly," They all jumped back up onto their seats to look outside, as the ship sailed into a cove that was surrounded by a small village on the coast and a docking port. "Each year group will disembark in turn, beginning with the seventh year; the first years will leave last. All bags and cases will be left on board and taken up to the estate separately and then to your rooms; this is your last chance to make sure that they are clearly labelled, so that you get the correct luggage. We hope that you've all had a pleasant journey, and have an enjoyable school year from the Fatum."

  "That so has to be a recording," Lucy said sure that he couldn't just be making that up as he went along.

  "How come we have to wait until the end?" Alex asked annoyed.

  "I know, that isn't fair at all," Troy agreed.

  "Doesn't that mean that we'll get there after everyone else?" Will asked.

  "I hate going into a room last, with everyone staring at you," Lucy admitted, making Troy and Alex smirk at each other, which she saw. "Don't even think about getting any ideas,"

  Lucy jumped down off of the seat and again Jessica followed her, this time with Libby as well not wanting to be left behind, so Selena followed as well.

  Troy turned around wondering what they were up to. "Where're you going?"

  "The lifts out there remember, how we got up here," Lucy told him. "Meaning that we'll probably be leaving the same way, that's why it's one year group at a time. We might as well be ready, unless you want to be last?"

  The three of them jumped down and followed the girls to the door.

  "We don't really want to be last either," Troy said to the others.

  Lucy opened the door and went out into the corridor where a few other doors were opening, meaning that they would probably have to make their way down to the lift before there was a queue for it.

  "I don't believe she's right again," Alex said as they followed them down the corridor.

  "Nathan..." Lucy said rushing forward to a boy with dark curly hair and bright blue eyes.

  "Where did you disappear to, I couldn't find you anywhere," Nathan told her.

  "I was with Jess and the others," Lucy told him.

  Nathan looked behind her, to see who she meant when she said others, and disappointment filled him when he saw that they had all been together. "I didn't know anyone in my compartment,"

  "You made friends though right...I made two new friends." Lucy told him.

  "So we're friends now?" Libby asked excitedly.

  "Yes," Selena answered simply as they carried on walking along the corridor, but others had already gotten to the lift before them, so even if it did arrive, they would still have to wait for it.

  "Why didn't you find me?" Nathan asked.

  "I'm sorry...I thought that you would have been like us...you know...get talking and make new friends," Lucy told him, she hadn't really meant to leave him all alone, but she had just got caught up with the others and kind of assumed that he would be alright.

  "I guess..." Nathan said still a little down heartedly that she had forgotten him.

  "I am sorry," Lucy told him.

  About half an hour late
r the doors finally opened up for them, and the students finally started to pile into the lift; considering how big they were they could fit a dozen at a time, so larger groups could go down. Will and his friends went down on the second trip, along with Nathan and the two lads that he had been sat with, they all introduced themselves on the way down which only took a couple of minutes and then the doors slide open and they made their way out into a large entrance way. This one was different than the docks, and seemed bigger but perhaps that was because it was more opened up; the whole side of the facing wall wasn't there it just led outside. They walked over hoping to see someone as there wasn't anyone else about, but as they got closer to the exist they saw that there were only several coaches for them, and the first lot of students that had gone down were already on board so they got on as well.