Alternia University

Gulp.

You gazed up at the intimidating building, clutching the handle of your suitcase in one hand and a crumpled black envelope in the other. The suitcase held basically everything you owned, and the envelope...well, it had shown up outside the door of the abandoned house you had been living in for the past couple of months. There had been a letter in it addressing you directly, with your full name (f/n) (m/n) (l/n), mentioned a few personal things about you that honestly freaked you out since you had never told anyone about them, and told you that although you didn’t have too, it would be in your best interest to attend Alternia University, a special place for people like you and that there wouldn’t be a cost for your tuition. It even included an acceptance letter, with instructions to show it at the gate when you arrived.

“People like me, huh?”

You hold the envelope up and look at the white writing on the front before looking back at the building. Even from across the street it was huge, and you could see people milling about in the courtyard behind the wide open gate. It seemed like a normal enough place, but you had to admit, there was something...off, about it. Like there was a veil covering the whole place, masking the true identity of the school and it’s inhabitants.

To be honest, it made you a little uneasy, but also...curious. If this place could help you with your...uh...little problem, why not give it a go? Worst case scenario, you leave and never look back. So, with that thought in mind, you take a deep breath, look both ways, and make your way over to the gate.

When you get there, you are greeted by an extremely pale man, white slicked back hair practically gleaming in the sunlight, dressed to the nines in a white tux with a lime green button down shirt and a darker green tie. His eyes were as bright as his shirt and he had a calm smile on his face.

“Ah, (f/n) welcome to Alternia University. We’ve been expecting you.”

He held out a gloved hand and you dumbfoundedly handed him the envelope. Holy shit this guy was practically as white as his hair, was he an albino or something? No, his eyes wouldn’t be green if he was, right?

“Please, follow me. We’ll take you to the Principal, then to the arena.”

He took your suitcase and proceeded to walk to the building, and you scrambled to follow him, doing your best to ignore the looks and whispers of the people around you. You couldn’t help but sneak a glance here and there and you were honestly surprised, because the people looked vastly different on the other side of the gate. It was like a whole other world, where people had horns, wings, and there was one kid who was just fucking floating.

Hope filled you as maybe, just maybe, you had finally come to a place where you could belong.

It took about 10 minutes to get to the principal’s office, and Doc Scratch (as he had introduced himself during the walk) gave you a reassuring smile as he knocked before opening the door and ushering you in.

“Well, well, well, look who finally decided to show up. You took your sweet time you know, the story wasn’t gonna just happen without you, yeesh.”

A large leather chair whirled around, revealing a rather young auburn haired woman in a black suit. You would eat your old neighbor One-Eyed Bob’s left boot if she was older than you.

“Uh...excuse me?”

Story? Just what the heck was this crazy chick talking about?

“Don’t play innocent with me, you know what I’m talking about!”

She pointed an accusing finger at you before pausing, bringing the finger to her lips.

“Wait, you actually don’t, nevermind. Anyways! I just need you to sign this waiver before we send you on your merry way, alright?”

She sets down a paper on the desk and a pen that looked like a sword (swordpen? pensword?) on the desk in front of you. You frowned as you picked it up, reading it over.

“Whoa whoa whoa, I could die here??”

The principal (what even is this douchebag’s name??) just shrugged.

“Look kid, this place is filled with people with dangerous powers, and sometimes shit happens. The waiver also states you aren’t responsible for any accidental deaths you may cause too y’know. Just sign it would ya? I don’t have all day. I’m an important person and I got a lot of important things to do.”

You scowl a little more, but sign the paper anyways, and she quickly snatches it up and stuffs it in a drawer before waving you off.

“Alright alright, get going to the arena. I wanna see who you end up with!”

“End up with…? What the fuck?”

“Oh it doesn’t matter. Go, shoo!”

She gets up and ushers your confused being out of her messy office. Doc Scratch is waiting on the other side, sighing as the Principal slams the door behind you.

“You must forgive her, she’s a very...trying person, but she means well. Now, if you would please allow me to escort you to the arena, the fun can really start.”

You’re still not sure how you feel about the principal, but you allow Doc to lead you out the back and to another large building that could have been a life-sized, completely restored replica of the Coliseum in Rome.

“Whoa…”

You probably look like an idiot, gaping up at the building like you are, but you don’t care. Man this place was fucking huge!

“Yes, I knew you’d find it impressive. You’ll also find the inside more impressive, but you’ll have to wait for that.”

Doc says in a smug manner, and you raise an eyebrow at him, but find that he’s right once you get inside. The benches are filled with people, and there are large sections of different colors, like a large rainbow. You wonder if they’re separated like the houses in Harry Potter, and each house has it’s own color. Or if a lot of people all decided to wear the same color then sit together out of pure coincidence.

Either way, you guess it doesn’t really matter. You’re on the ground with a hoard of other people and Doc Scratch leaves you, disappearing in a flash of green and reappearing on a stage at the end closest to you. He takes a mic and clears his throat, and the dull roar of people talking up on the stands dies down.

“Welcome ladies and gentlemen, to another year here at Alternia University!”

A loud cheer sounds throughout the crowd, and you don’t know whether to cheer with them or stay quiet.

“As you know, it is our duty here to teach the young, gifted people such as yourselves how to harness and control your abilities. However, we cannot do that if we do not know what they can do, and which group they belong too, can we?”

Another cheer, this one much louder. You’re starting to become even more nervous, and a red eyed boy with a messy mop of ebony hair next to you nudges you.

“Hey fuckass, don’t shit yourself, you’ll be fine. There’s no blood spilt when they’re trying to place you in a house, they just wanna feel out what kind of ‘gift’ you have.”

He walks away before you can even thank him for his strange, but comforting words.

“Now, let’s begin!”

The place practically shakes as the people in the stands jump up, cheering loudly. As the mystery boy says, it’s actually not that bad. It’s basically people just showing off what they can do, and then they go stand next to a teacher wearing a specific color. You see the floaty boy from earlier, laughing goofily as he just floats there one second before disappearing, becoming the wind itself. Then later, you see the crabby sounding guy from before, who turns out to be an empath with the ability to manipulate his own blood to form a shield or two sickles.

Before you know it, you are called to the platform in the middle of the large field. You shakily make your way to the middle. There are twelve teachers, some smiling at you encouragingly, others with a bored or intrigued expression.

It was now or never you suppose, taking a deep breath and closing your (e/c) eyes for a moment before opening them slowly.