The next several days I spent doing pretty much nothing. John had told me that I would be living in a dorm when school started in five days, so the only thing I had really unpacked was my video game console. There was no internet, so I couldn’t play against my friends back in Seattle, but single player wasn’t so bad.

On Saturday, four days after I had arrived, I was informed that I was leaving.

“School starts on a Saturday?!” I asked incredulously, a bit of sausage dangling from my fork.

“Oh no, school itself starts on Monday. But today is the first arrival day, and I thought you might like a couple of days without classes to… acclimate,” John answered cheerfully.

“Joy,” I didn’t even try to mask my sarcasm, “When do we leave?”

“In about ten minutes.”

I hurriedly scarfed the rest of my breakfast and ran out to grab my bags.

Eight minutes later, we walked out the door. It was probably the first time I’ve never been running late. I stood on the doorstep, then looked over at John, “Where’s the car?”

“Oh, I don’t own one. We’ll be catching a ride at the bottom of the hill,” John hefted my duffel bag and set off down the driveway.

I groaned before picking up my backpack and following him.



The walk down the long, wooded road seemed a lot longer than the drive up it. By the time we had reached the fork, my feet hurt and my backpack felt like a lead weight.

“Well, we’re a bit early,” John announced, “We have a minute or two to rest.”

I gratefully flopped down on the ground and removed my tennis shoes, rubbing my socked feet, “So what kind of ride are we hitching, anyway?”

John sat next to me and leaned back, “The truck driver who delivers supplies to the school will be coming by in a moment. We’ll be riding with him.”

Sure enough, as he finished speaking, we heard a loud rumble; then a large semi turned the corner and began driving up the road towards us.

John stood up and waved his arms, causing the truck to grumble to a stop next to us. I simply stood and stared. The tractor was bright red, while the trailer it hauled was black with a bold, stylized dragon emblazoned on it in matching red.

The window rolled down, and a surprisingly young driver leaned out. He looked to be in his early twenties with hair as bright as his truck pulled back into a scruffy ponytail and a goatee.

“Hey there, Mr. Whitefeather. Ya need a ride?”

“We most certainly do,” John walked over to the window and said something that I couldn’t hear over the engine. The truck driver nodded, then motioned for us to get in.

“Alright, Ryan. Get your backpack and let’s go,” John grabbed my duffel bag and walked over to the passenger side.

I climbed up into the truck and sat in the single passenger seat while John sat on the bed in the back.

“Wassup?” the truck driver said conversationally as he hit the gas, “The name’s James,”

“Ryan,” I responded, jerking as we lurched forward. Hurriedly, I tightened my seatbelt.

“You a freshman this year? I don’t 'member ya being at the middle school,” James cranked the wheel and turned us sharply to the right onto a gravel road.

Again with the middle school thing, “Yes, I’m a freshman, I went to middle school in Seattle,” I grit my teeth as the truck rumbled over a narrow bridge, water rushing only feet below. What was it with crazy drivers around here?

“Das cool. My lil' brother Shalou's a freshman this year. You should totally meet him!” James downshifted and the truck lurched again, slowly roaring it’s way up the mountain’s incline.

“Kay,” I’m fairly certain my voice cracked as I held onto the armrests for dear life.

Behind me, John laughed and I scowled. He was probably enjoying this.

“Hold on,” James yelled suddenly, prompting me to tighten my death grip on the chair.

The whole truck teetered slightly as we rounded a sharp curve, and I heard a loud thunk as my duffel bag slid, then we pulled into a small parking lot.

“We’re here!” James announced cheerfully.

I quickly unbuckled my seatbelt and clambered out, John not far behind with my stuff.

Waving goodbye to James, we climbed the front steps of the rather small school. Entering the main doors, I looked around the commons. Tables and chairs were scattered every where, with three hallways off to the right and one off to the left. Stairs led up to the second story halls.

Entering the office, John had a quick conversation with the lady at the desk and came back with a piece of paper and a key.

“Here’s your schedule, room number, and room hey,” He handed the items to me and pointed towards the far hall, “The freshman dorms are at the very end of the D-wing. I have to speak to the administration, so I’ll see you later.”

“Right, later,” I waved to him and set off towards the dorms, duffelbag and backpack in hand.

The first part of the hall was devoted to science labs, and I passed four on either side before coming to a set of double doors at the end of the wing. Stepping through these, I found myself in the dormitories.

A burnished gold number hung on each door, with number one on my right. A quick glance at my schedule paper told me I would be heading for room 50. Great, a bit of walking to do, then.

Watching the numbers to my right, I headed down the hall until I came to number 50. It was at the very end of the hall, next to the staircase. It was also right by the bathrooms and a pop machine. Score.

Unlocking the door, I stepped inside my new room and flicked on the lights. A bed sat on either side of the door, with a large dresser and desk at the far end of the room.

Tossing my stuff onto the left side bed, I started unpacking. A few belongings went on the shelf above my, while my four sets of clothes went in the dresser drawers. I taped up a couple posters over my bed, then pulled a small black jewelry box out of my duffel bag. Opening it, I removed the silver necklace and placed it around my neck.

Leaning back against the wall, I sat on my bed and looked at the charm on the necklace. It was an incredibly detailed dragon clutching a purple jewel. It was also the only thing I had left of my birth parents, who had died when I was two. Not for the first time, I wondered why I had it. Who gives their baby funky dragon jewelry anyway? In movies, it was a gold cross or a locket or something. And it was usually a girl.

I was distracted from my thoughts when the room’s door was kicked open with a loud bang, the end swinging around to smash into the wall mere inches from my bed.

Standing in the doorway was the teen who was presumably my roommate. He was rather short, with electric blue hair and a flatscreen television in his arms.

“This is excellent!” he declared loudly, setting the TV on the floor at the end of the other bed.

Another boy followed him in, this one much taller and older, with dark blue hair tied back in a long ponytail. He looked around the room with disdain, “This is nothing compared to the senior dorms,” He dumped the pile of bags he carried on the bed and walked out.

“Yeah, whatever Micheal!” the younger boy yelled after him. The boy sighed, then walked over to stand in front of me, “Hey, Roomie!”

I stared at him, eyes drawn to his incredibly bright tie-dye T-shirt and neon orange board shorts, “Uh, hi.”

“The name’s Mitchell Yueshuu, Mitch for short,” He stuck out his hand and I shook it cautiously.

“I’m Ryan White.”

“Awesome,“ Mitch sat on his bed and stretched, “So where you from? I don’t recall seeing you around here before.”

“Seattle,” I answered with a shrug, “Lived there most of my life.”

“’Most of’?” Where’d you live before?” Mitch asked curiously.

“I dunno. My parents died when I was two. I’m adopted.”

“Story of our lives, I guess. My sister’s adopted too,” Mitch lay back and put his hands behind his head, “So, you get adopted by a couple of dragons?”

I frowned, “No, my parents are-were pretty nice. Nothing like in movies.”

“Still haven’t answered my question. Were they dragons, or something else?”

Now I was confused, “They were regular people Mitch. My dad worked at Microsoft, my mom was a secretary.”

Mitch looked at me curiously, obviously finding something strange in my answer. Then, like a light going on, he sat straight up and looked at me with wide eyes. For the first time, I noticed that his eyes were white.

“You don’t know, do you," He dropped off the bed and began pacing, “I can’t believe they stuck me with some unknowable. I’ve never gone through the big reveal, I don’t know what to do, “ He muttered, more to himself than me.

“Mitch,” I said firmly, “What are you talking about?”

“You! You, you’re- arggh!” Mitch clutched his head and resumed pacing.

I watched him pass in front of my bed several times, obviously debating something internally, then stuck out a hand to catch him, ”Spit it out!”

“Fine,” Mitch tapped his fingers against his cheek for a moment, then thought of something to say, “Okay. Have you ever had something happen to you, something you couldn’t explain?”

“Mitch, this isn’t a Harry Potter book.”

Mitch gaped comically for a moment, then threw his hands down, “Gah. Fine. I’ll put this as simply as possible. I’m not human, and neither are you.”

I laughed weakly, unsure if that was supposed to be a joke, “I pretty sure last time I looked in the mirror I was all human.”

“That’s because you don’t know,” Mitch attempted to explain, “I’m a dragon, and so are you and everybody else in this school.” When I didn’t respond, he grew frustrated, “If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you.”

There was a sound like ripping paper, then something bright blue and feathery burst from my roommate’s back. I yelped and pressed myself against the wall as Mitch loomed over me, wings outspread.

“This’ll be easier if you don’t struggle,” Mitch said threateningly. Then he pounced.

Despite his warning, I twisted frantically to escape his hold, but his wings had wrapped tightly around me. One of Mitch’s hands managed to grab my necklace and pull it off, then I felt a sharp jab in my lower back and all went dark.