Chapter 16 - Restless

Lost was sitting, leaning against the wall when Sarah and Swirl came into the dorm. Their laughter and chatter stopped when they saw Lost looking shaken.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Sarah asked, her brow crinkled in concern.

"Did something happen? Are you still worried about that noise you heard?" Swirl said.

"I guess I'm still a bit spooked," Lost started shakily, "When I was walking back, I heard someone behind me! I saw them, they were right behind me!"

"Wait, wait. Someone was actually stalking you?" Swirl gulped.

"I think so." Lost stood up, her legs still weak from the fright.

For a moment, the dorm was quiet as the girls thought about what Lost said.

 

"It could have been someone going to their dorm and they just happened to be behind you," Sarah said after a while.

 

"That's possible," Swirl replied.

 

Lost nodded, still a bit unsure. "Yeah, maybe."

 

 

"Well, as much as I don't want to leave you guys, I should get back to my dorm," Sarah said. "I'll see you all tomorrow, okay?"

 

 

Sarah walked over to the door, paused, and turned around. "And Lost? Don't worry, we'll figure this mystery out."

 

 

"Thanks, Sarah. Have a good sleep!" Lost said.

 

Lost watched Sarah leave. As the door softly closed, Lost's gaze met Swirl's.

 

 

"Don't worry. We can think about this tomorrow. Try to get some rest," Swirl said reassuringly.

Lost nodded and smiled softly at Swirl before going to sit on her bed. She leaned back into the soft blanket and stared at the plain white ceiling above her.

 

A thought struck her. Rolling over, she grabbed her phone from the night table. She lightly pressed the power button and went to all of her text messages. She clicked Koolest's name and sent a quick text.

 

Lost scanned her last few texts that she had sent at school. A few of them said they had been read but the last few hadn't. And there had been no reply from Koolest.

She's probably just busy with school and stuff. She'll get back to me later.

- - -

Lost felt like an overtired zombie the next morning as she grabbed the tray and moved down the line. She stiffly held her tray of scrambled eggs and toast and gazed out at all the tables. She thought she noticed a few students glance at her and whisper something to their friends.

Everyone probably knows I ditched a class. Great.

"Lost! Over here!" Ja called from a table nearby.

"Hey," Lost mumbled as she sat down and started poking at her eggs. The smell was making her want to puke.

"Lost, you look awful! Did you not get any sleep?" Karalee asked, her eyes full of worry.

"I had a super restless sleep," Lost said.

Swirl stared at Lost from across the table. "Is this about last night?"

"Oh, Sarah told me what happened, Lost! That sounds spooky!" Ja said.

"Wait, what? Did I miss something?" Karalee said. "Something spooky happened?"

Lost ate her toast while vaguely listened as Swirl and Sarah gave Karalee the full story on what happened. Lost's mind drifted off to think about what to say to Ms. Liza and what might happen to her and if she'd fail English and-

"Wow, Lost, that sounds so weird!" Karalee said, her voice breaking through Lost's worries. "The mystery just gets more and more strange."

"Mhm," Lost said and rubbed her eyes.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Sarah asked. "You look super tired. Is there anything else bothering you?"

"Well, I haven't heard from Koolest in a long while. She hasn't replied to any of my recent texts and I'm worried," Lost said.

"Oh no," Swirl said worriedly. "I'm sure everything is fine but I'll keep an eye out for her, okay?"

"Yeah, I think we have some of the same classes so I'll try to spot her," Karalee said.

"We'll find her, don't worry," Ja patted Lost's shoulder.

"Thanks, guys." Lost forced a smile, trying to ignore the worry that was twisting in her.

- - -

"Lostfairy? Lostfairy, can you come back to us, please?" Mr. Cosmo called.

"Whuh?" Lost sat up straight quickly. Everyone in her science class turned and gave her odd looks.

Mr. Cosmo sighed and rubbed his face tiredly. "I was asking if you knew what male bees are called and if they had any job in the hive?"

"Um," Lost quickly thought back at what she had read the day before. "They are called drones and their job is to mate with the female bees," Lost said.

"That is correct but pay more attention next time, okay?" Mr. Cosmo said before asking some other student a question about female bees.

Lost slumped in her chair. Her mind was full of worry and she just couldn't think of anything else. Her gaze slipped over to her backpack.

Should I risk it?

Carefully reaching for her backpack pocket that held her phone, she kept an eye on Mr. Cosmo. She quietly slipped the phone out and turned it on. She checked her text messages.

Still none from Koolest.

Lost felt her heart drop lower as she put the phone back. Penguin, sitting next to her, caught her gaze. He looked at her, then the backpack, and then her again. He frowned and shook his head before looking back at Mr. Cosmo.

Trying to act cool, Lost felt her face turn warm as she tried to pay attention to the young teacher as he excitedly talked about the eating habits of bees.

 

- - -

 

Lost slunk into her English classroom before the bell rang, hoping to catch Ms. Liza alone so they could talk before everyone came and heard them. That would be majorly embarrassing.

 

The room was empty except for Ms. Liza who was grabbing books from a box and putting them into the giant oak shelves. She turned around to see who had come in.

 

"Ah, Lost, glad to see your feeling better," Ms. Liza smiled. "Come, help me put these books away."

 

Lost slowly walked over, feeling uncomfortable. She held a stack of books out for let Ms. Liza who grabbed the first one and searched for its place.

 

"So, what happened yesterday?" Ms. Liza asked after a few minutes.

 

Lost gulped. "I panicked, I'm so sorry. You can punish me or tell the Headmaster or fail me or-"

 

"Sweetie, calm down," Ms. Liza chuckled softly. "Nothing bad is going to happen. It was my own fault, jumping that on you at the last second."

 

"I just don't like public speaking." Lost handed her teacher a thick book. "And I know ditching class is awful but I just had to get away."

 

"I get that, Lost," Ms. Liza said, sliding another book into its place. "But in English, you will have to do public speaking but you will get better. And your in Drama, aren't you? That will also help you cause you'll have to do your lines onstage."

 

Ms. Liza turned to look at Lost and looked into her eyes. "We can't always run away from our fears. Life will sometimes make us have to face them head on. You can do that for me?"

 

Lost nodded just as the bell rang.

 

"Well, it's almost class time. Thank you for helping, Lost," Ms. Liza said with a smile. She grabbed the box and put it in a nearby cupboard.

 

"So, I'm not in trouble?" Lost asked, shocked.

 

"No, you're fine." Ms. Liza winked as if they had a special secret and walked over to her desk.

 

Breathing a sigh of relief that everything went better than expected, Lost sat at her desk and waited for class to start.

Chapter 15 - The Shadowy Figure

The whole table was quiet as the words Karalee had just spoken set in in. They all looked at each other.

"Uh, how can we solve a mystery?" Ja asked. "We all have busy school schedules. When would we have time to do it?"

"And," Swirl added, "we could get in trouble."

"How can we get in trouble for just listening?" Karalee asked.

"What do you mean?" Lost said.

"I mean, right now, we can't do anything. We just have to keep our ears open. Listen for clues. Then we can try to piece it together," Karalee declared.

"Well, as long as we do something, I'm good with that," Lost replied. "I hate feeling like I did something but I don't even know what."

"Hmm, let's start by going over all the details," Karalee said.

"What exactly did Headmaster Clark and Mr. Greely say?" Swirl asked, looking at Lost.

"Well," Lost said, thinking back, "they said that there was a serious problem. And that if they told anyone, the school could look bad. Headmaster Clark sounded really upset."

"Anything else?" Sarah asked.

"They also said they had to be calm. But they also said a sister might notice whatever they were talking about. And then they mentioned that because this sister was new, it might be a huge misunderstanding," Lost said. "Does that help?"

"Well, whatever it is, it sounds big and bad," Ja said, chewing on fry, thoughtfully.

"And it sounds like the school might be in trouble if more people found out about it," Swirl said.

"We don't have enough information. So for now, let's just make sure to listen to people around us," Karalee said.

Lost nodded and finished the last of her poutine. Just then, the overhead speakers crackled to life.

"Good evening, Jamaasian High! I hope your day was wonderful and full of education," Headmaster Clark said. "Right now, you have a couple hours of free time so feel free to go to the games room, library, or your dorms. Also, the art room is open, so you can go over and paint some masterpieces! Be sure to be back at your dorms at lights out. Jam on!"

The speakers fell silent and the room filled with chatter again. Lost stood up and looked at her friends.

"What do you guys want to do now?" Lost asked.

"I was going to go meet up with Gfox and hang out in the games room again," Karalee said. "Do any of you want to come with me?"

"I'll come!" Ja said, quickly moving over to Karalee.

"Well, I guess we'll see you later," Swirl said as nobody else went over next to Karalee. "Bye, guys!"

After Karalee and Ja left, Swirl turned to look at Sarah and Lost. "Now what?"

"The art room sounds good to me," Lost said with a shrug.

"I'm good with that! Let's go!" Sarah said, leading the way.

Just as Lost was about to follow, she bumped right into someone who let out an "OOF!"

"Oh, I am so sorry!" Lost cried. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, thanks," the girl said, wiping her large glasses with her sleeve. "It happens all the time."

"I'm glad you're okay!" Lost said, relieved. "Well, see you later!"

"Bye," the girl called as Lost started to run after Swirl and Sarah.

Lost hurried out of the cafeteria after her two friends. Together, they wandered down a couple of halls to the art room.

As soon as they stepped inside the empty room, the smell of old paint became overpowering. Lost wrinkled her nose a bit and sat down at a large easel. Swirl and Sarah went to two other easels a little further.

"What are you guys going to paint?" Lost asked, getting comfortable on her stool.

"I'm not sure yet. Probably a cat," Swirl grinned, looking over her paints and brushes. "What are you guys going to paint?"

"A horse!" Sarah said, as she got a dreamy look in her eyes. "A nice, big, brown, beautiful horse. She's going to have a star between her eyes and a brown, gorgeous mane."

"Wow, that's a great description!" Lost laughed. "I don't know what I'm going to paint yet."

"I want her to look like the horse I ride sometimes. Her name is Jazz," Sarah explained.

"Oh, cool!" Lost said.

As Swirl and Sarah began painting, Lost looked around the art room, trying to get inspiration. The room was full of trinkets, paints, and all sorts of random things. She noticed a blue glob of paint on the floor was still wet.

Suddenly, the lights flickered a few times before going out completely. The whole school went pitch black.

"Um, guys? What happened?" Sarah asked cautiously.

"I have no idea," Lost replied back, trying to see her friends in the darkness. Her eyes weren't used to the sudden change of lighting.

"I think the power went out. It sounds like a thunderstorm is going on outside," Swirl said.

Lost listened hard. She could hear the crash of thunder and the wind roaring. "That's probably it. Let me see if I can find a flashlight somewhere around here. Do you guys remember seeing any closet or something? Maybe a flashlight is in there."

"I think I saw one on one of the shelves by the door. Be careful though, I don't want you to walk into anything," Sarah said.

Lost got up and walked slowly over to where she thought the door was. Instead, she crashed into an easel, knocking it to the ground.

"Lost?! Are you okay?" Swirl asked.

"I'm fine," Lost said. "I don't know if the easel is though."

Lost moved to the left to avoid walking into the fallen easel and moved her hands out in front of her as she walked, trying to find the door. Her hand slightly brushed the cold doorknob.

As Lost's eyes got more adjusted to the dark, she looked up and saw a few shelves close to the door. Lost moved her hand around the shelves, feeling the objects on it. She pushed past some of the trinkets and felt around the back corner.

"Aha!" Lost said, grasping a flashlight. "I found it!"

Lost fumbled to turn the flashlight on. All of a sudden, Lost heard a noise coming from the other side of the door. Like someone accidently knocked something against the door.

Lost whirled around, shining the light at the window of the door. Nothing was by the door. The hall was strangely dark and Lost couldn't see very much because of the dimness.

"Did you guys hear that?" Lost asked, glancing at her friends.

"Hear what?" Sarah asked, squinting as Lost shone the light over to her friends.

Lost flew the door open and stepped a little into the hallway. She looked down the hall and saw no one.

"What's going on?" Swirl said, walking over to Lost, paintbrush in hand.

"I thought I heard someone out in the hall but no one's here," Lost said. "It sounded like someone was watching us."

"Uh, that's spooky," Sarah said. "What if you heard wrong? Maybe it was just the wind?"

"It sure sounded like someone hitting something on the door," Lost answered, walking back inside.

"Well, no one is out there so there's no way we can find out who it was," Swirl said, closing the door behind her. "Maybe it was just some student who likes playing tricks on others."

"Maybe," Lost replied doubtfully.

"Let's just keep painting and try to forget about it," Swirl declared.

Lost nodded and walked back to her empty easel. All possible inspiration was gone.

"I think I'm going to go back to my dorm," Lost said, standing up again.

"Wait, we can come with," Sarah said as she started to get up.

"No, no, it's fine. You guys keep painting. I'll catch you later, alright?" Lost said, handing the flashlight to Swirl. "You can keep the flashlight."

"If you're sure about going alone," Swirl said, sounding unsure. "You aren't going to try to find who hit the door, right?"

"Oh, no. I'm just tired and figured I could use some extra rest," Lost replied. "See you guys later!"

Lost hurried out of the room and down the dark hall. She glanced up at the overhead lights.

I wish these were working tonight! It's creepy walking in a dark hallway when someone may or may not be spying on you.

Lost picked up her pace, trying not to let her overactive imagination get the best of her. As she turned the corner, she heard a noise.

Lost stopped and held her breath.

A footstep.

Someone was nearby.

Lost hurried further down the hall, fear gripping at her.

Don't look behind. Pretend you heard nothing. DO NOT LOOK BEHIND YOU.

Just as she was about to go up the staircase, her curiosity got the better of her. She turned around and looked back down the hall.

A dark shadow moved down the hall.

Lost bolted up the stairs, taking two at a time. Lost tore down the hall and hurriedly unlocked the door of her dorm. She whipped open the door and slammed it shut. After locking it, Lost sunk down onto the floor, breathing hard.

Lost had no idea who that was or why they had followed her.

Why were all these mysterious things happening in Jamaasian High? And why did it include her?

Chapter 14 - The Game's Afoot

Lost hurried out of the bathroom just as the bell rang. Keeping her head down, she rushed through the crowds of students, all going to their next classes.

Lost knew she should have gone back to her English class but after what had happened, there was no way she was going back to face all those people who had just seen her run out of class. So, she had stayed in the girls bathroom, hiding.

Reaching the door to her Art class, Lost scurried into the room and sat down at her desk. She slouched slowly as more students came rushing in. What if one of them was in her English? If they noticed her, would they tell everyone what had happened? Will the whole school know that the new kid ran out of class, crying?

She was going to stay low. Not talk to anyone. Get through the day and then stay in her dorm. For the whole evening. Maybe the whole next day too.

I'm being dramatic. Calm down, Lost, I can do this.

Lost's mind drifted back to what had happened in the hallway.

I wish I knew why Headmaster Clark and Mr. Greely were talking about me. And probably Koolest too. Its not fair that I don't even know what we did!

"Hey!" Snowyclaw said as she sat down a few desks away from Lost.

 

Lost gave a quick smile before going lower into her seat.

It was going to be a long class.
 

***
 

"Lost? Helloooo? Lost, you alive?" Swirl asked loudly, waving a hand in front of Lost's face.

 

"Hm?" Lost blinked, trying to push away her bothering thoughts out of her head. Like how Ms. Liza had come to her earlier and talked to her about not running out of the classroom again. Lost was lucky it was just a warning.

The girls were sitting in a corner at Drama class, practicing their lines. All the students had separated into groups, getting ready for the audition which was apparently coming up soon. Ms. Tavie hadn't given a date since she thought it'd be best if it was a surprise. She claimed that it was better that way.

 

"This is the third time you've left me and gone deep into thought," Swirl replied, frowning worriedly. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright," Lost said.

Swirl quirked an eyebrow. "Oh, really?"

 

"Fine. No," Lost sighed. "In English, I was supposed to read my report out loud in front of the whole class. But I chickened out and ran out of class."

"Aw, I'm so sorry!" Swirl said gently. "I know public speaking can be really hard."

"But that's not all! When I ran out, I bumped into Mr. Greely and Headmaster Clark. They were some deep, secretive discussion," Lost said.

 

"Really? Did you hear what it was about?" Swirl asked.

"It sounded like it was about me," Lost whispered.

 

"What?! Why would they be talking about you?" Swirl cried. "What did they say that makes you think it was about you?"

"Well," Lost thought back. "They mentioned a sister and that... they were new? And something about a misunderstanding? That's all I got, really. It didn't make any sense."

 

"I'm sure they weren't talking about you. Maybe their talking about Headmaster Clark's new-new... cat! And the cat has a sister but it was a misunderstanding when he bought both!" Swirl declared.

Lost laughed. "That's crazy! Did you just randomly think of that?"

"Yup," Swirl admitted, grinning.

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't about a cat but good guess," Lost said, teasingly.

"Hey, a girl can try," Swirl joked. "Well, in all seriousness, maybe we should talk to our other friends and bounce off ideas about this."

"Yeah, sounds like a plan. Maybe at supper?" Lost said.

 

"Sure! We should probably keep practicing our lines otherwise we're going to get in trouble," Swirl said, holding up her many papers that were full of lines.

Lost nodded and looked down at her own sheet of papers. "Now where were we?"

***

Lost hurried over to her table, trying to keep her tray of poutine steady. She dodged a chair getting pushed out quickly by a boy and kept on going.

This is like an obstacle course.

Quickly, Lost scooted into her chair next to Swirl and Ja. Sarah and Karalee came over, balancing their trays and sat down.

"Where's Gracie and Fang?" Lost asked through a mouthful of fries and gravy.

"Mm!" Karalee swallowed. "They said they had to go study for some paper in history or something."

Swirl pounded her fist on the table, making Sarah jump. "Lost has something to tell us. Right, Lost?"

Lost slowly nodded and swallowed her fries before saying anything. "Alright, so, Swirl thinks that you guys can help with a problem... thing."

"A problem thing? What's wrong?" Ja asked.

After Lost finished explaining what she overheard Headmaster Clark and Mr. Greely talking about, all her friends looked confused.

"That's... weird," Sarah said.

"Really weird," Ja agreed.

"How do you know they were talking about you?" Karalee asked, leaning back in her chair.

Lost thought for a moment. "Well, I'm new and my sister, Koolestkat, is new too. I guess two other sisters might also be new this year but still. Doesn't it sound like it's about me? Like the way they acted around me?"

"Hm, this is very interesting," Karalee mused.

"Kind of like a mystery," Ja said.

Karalee's eyes brightened. "Yes! A mystery! A mystery that needs to get solved!"

"What are you saying?" Lost asked, although she had a good idea what Karalee was going to say next.

"I'm saying, we have a mystery to solve," Karalee announced.

Chapter 9 - The HQ Appears

Lost marched into the cafeteria and took a deep breath. Halfway done school for today!

She wandered over to the lunch line and stared into space, daydreaming. Lost moved up in line without thinking.

"Hey! Lost!" a voice broke through Lost's daydream.

Lost turned around and saw Karalee standing behind her, grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh, hey," Lost said. "What's up?"

"Nothing much. What was the last class you went to?" Karalee asked.

"History. With grumpy ol' Mr. Greely," Lost said, rolling her eyes. "We learnt about this ancient tribe of warriors that were called Phantoms. They apparently attacked the explorers, Mira and Zios." Lost then grabbed a orange lunch tray from the counter.

"Ah. Sounds interesting at least!" Karalee said as she also picked up a tray.

Lost shrugged. "It was okay."

Lost grabbed an apple and piece of pizza from the lunch counter. After some contemplating, she grabbed another piece of pizza.

Grabbing a juice box, Lost turned around to look at Karalee. "Wanna sit together?"

Karalee nodded and Lost lead the way over to an empty table near the middle of the room. Sighing, Lost plopped down on her chair and closed her eyes.

"You tired still?" Karalee teased as she bit into a gooey piece of pizza.

"I guess so! It's been busy. Go go go, you know?" Lost said, opening her eyes and sticking her straw into her juice box. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a girl walk over to their table.

"Mind if I sit here?" the girl said, standing close to the table.

"Sure!" Karalee said.

The girl smiled and sat down next across from Lost.

"I'm Karalee! And this is Lostfairy," Karalee said, gesturing to herself and to Lost.

"Cool. I'm Pinpun. Call me Pin for short," Pin said, biting into a sandwich. Pin had her hair dyed purple and styled into a Mohawk. She wore a dark purple jacket and a bunch of lilac colored bracelets. A spiked necklace was around her neck.

The girls chattered and ate their lunches. After a little while, Lost looked at the big clock on the wall.

"I should go," Lost said, standing to her feet.

"Why? The bell hasn't rung," Pin said.

"I know. I like getting to classes early though. I get better seats that way," Lost joked. "Well, bye guys!"

"Bye!" Karalee called.

Lost wandered out into the hallway and headed towards her math class. She sighed happily. The hallways were so much more peaceful when they weren't filled with yelling students. Lost enjoyed herself as she strolled along through the halls.

All of a sudden, a loud sharp yell shattered the silence. Lost picked up her pace and turned around the corner when she saw a group of kids all huddled around something. A few kids wandering the halls stopped and joined the huddle.

Curious, Lost kept on walking towards them. As she came closer, she listened to some of the yells.

"Hit him! C'mon, do it!"

"Punch him!"

Is this a fight?

Lost turned to a girl who was silently watching. She was leaning against the wall, twirling her black hair with her finger. Her dark eyes stared intently at the herd of kids.

"Hey, do you know what this is all about?" Lost asked as she stood next to the girl.

"No. I wasn't here when it started," she said before looking up.

Lost nodded and wondered what to do. As she looked around, she noticed that a younger looking boy was bolting down the hall, away from the fight. Lost cocked her head and stared down the hall.

What was that kid doing?!

 "I'm Lostfairy, by the way," Lost said.

"I'm Purple. Purplestarclub," Purple replied.

All of a sudden, Lost saw an adult walking down the hall. He seemed to walk with such authority. The boy Lost had noticed before trailed after him.

The man pushed past the huddle and grabbed each of the boys who were fighting each other. Both of them had blood on their face and a scowl on their lips.

"What do you two think you were doing?" the man demanded.

"He started it!" one of the boys yelled, pointing at the other one.

"I don't care who started it," the man said sternly. "Now tell me. What were you fighting about?"

Lost turned to Purple. "Who is that guy?"

"He's part of the security team. Us students nicknamed them the HQ. Headquarters," Purple said. "They always stop fights and stuff."

Lost turned back to the HQ who was still talking to the boys.

"If neither of you will tell me why you were fighting, I'm going to have to take you to the Headmaster," the HQ said.

The HQ then started walking back down the hall, pushing the boys with his arms.

All the kids who had watched the fight were silent until the trio went around the corner. Then they all turned to the boy Lost had seen before.

"Why'd you have to report them?" a girl yelled at the boy.

"Yeah! Now they're in trouble and it's all your fault!" another student shouted.

"Now, now! He didn't do anything wrong!" Lost said, without thinking.

Everyone stared at her. Lost shifted her feet. The bell rung and Lost sighed with relief. Finally, the crowd went their separate ways to their classrooms.

Lost rushed down the hall towards her math class, shaking her head. That was enough excitement for her.

* * *

Lost hurried into English just as the final bell rang. She quickly scooted into her seat and let out a sigh. Math had gone late because she had to ask Mr. Graham some questions about a problem she had in her math quiz.

Ms. Liza stood in front of the class room, with hands folded in front of her as she watched the students with her bright curious eyes.

"Alright!" Ms. Liza announced. The whole room's buzz of chatter instantly stopped.

 "Today, you will use this whole class time to work on your report on something that needs changing in Jamaasian High. Remember, this is your last time to work on it before it is due!" Ms. Liza said. "Now! Let your imagination run wild!"

Lost got her notebook out of her backpack and started writing her report. She stopped suddenly and quickly reread what she already had written. Was it good enough?

"Don't doubt yourself," Ms. Liza said gently, standing next to Lost's desk. "I'm sure it's wonderful."

Lost nodded and watched Ms. Liza move back to her desk.

I wonder how she knew I was doubting my report...

Lost shook her head slightly and began writing again.

* * *

The bell rang throughout the whole school. Lost quickly snapped her notebook shut, shoved it into her backpack, and stood up.

All the students in the class dashed through the door and into the halls. Lost walked slowly up to Ms. Liza's desk where her teacher was scrawling something down. Lost cleared her throat.

"Yes, Lostfairy?" Ms. Liza said, smiling.

"Um, I just wanted to thank you for helping me get past my doubt," Lost said shyly.

"Ah, you're welcome," Ms. Liza said. "Now you better run along! The last class for today should be starting soon!"

Lost nodded and ran out into the hall. The halls were not nearly empty and everyone was laughing and talking.

Pulling her backpack open, Lost reached past the books and grabbed her beat up schedule.

Lost beamed when she saw what her last class was. Art! Glorious art!

Lost dashed up the stairs, taking two at a time. She bolted down the hall and threw open the door at the end of the corridor.

Taking a deep breath, Lost stepped into the room. A couple of students glanced up at her and then went back to chatting.

"Lost! Hi!" a girl yelled from behind Lost.

Lost whirled around and saw Snowyclaw, the cheerleader who greeted her yesterday.

"How are you doing? Don't you totally love this place?" Snowy said cheerfully.

"Yeah, it's awesome," Lost smiled.

"And art is literally the best class!" Snowy said.

"Hey, I love art too!" Lost exclaimed.

"Yay! I have another friend who loves to draw as well," Snowy said, looking around the room and then peering out into the hallway. "Oh! There she is! Artymis, c'mon!"

A girl, who's name was supposedly Artymis, rushed down the hall and ran over to Lost and Snowy. She wore a white headband with little mini antlers. She also wore a light blue jacket and a blue necklace with spikes. White bracelets finished the look.

"I can't wait to start painting!" Artymis said to Snowy, ignoring Lost.

"Me too! Let's go get seats," Snowy said. They both walked over to two empty desks and sat down.

Lost followed and sat down behind them. As she put her backpack down, Lost looked around the room.

There were paint brushes everywhere. There all sorts of paints, brushes, and canvases all scattered around in the room on shelves and on tables. There were huge splotches of paint on the floors in bright colors. The air smelled like paint.

The door closed and a young woman walked into the room. She wore a pink skirt and a fancy purple shirt. The woman's hair was dyed purple and was styled in a cute pixie cut. Lost noticed a single earring in her ear that was a golden bell.

"Hello! I am your art teacher, Ms. Peck," Ms. Peck said, beaming. "In my art class, we are all allowed to be our artsy, creative self. In my art class, we are going to have the most fun time ever."

She sure is enthusiastic.

"So! Today, we are all going to get our creative juices flowing by all painting the same thing. But, in our own unique styles," Ms. Peck said, reaching down and grabbing a rose in a pretty vase. "So, let's start by painting this rose."

Ms. Peck walked around the room, handing out a couple of different sizes of paintbrushes and a palette with a variety of paints.

Lost stared at the beautiful yet complicated rose. She then stared at her paints. Lost sighed softly.

This will be fun.

Chapter 7 - The Amazing Meatballs

A girl came marching into the dorm. She had brown hair with long bangs. She wore a brown longbow on her back and an orange and blue scarf around her neck. She had a bright smile on her face as she stared at Lost and Swirl.

"Hi there! I'm Graciepopstar!" Gracie said.

"Hey, I'm Lost and this is Swirl," Lost replied. "I'm guessing your our dorm mate?

"Yup," Gracie said, looking around at the room.

"Is that your suitcase?" Swirl asked, pointing at the bag near the bed by the window.

"No, that's not mine. It must be our other room mate," Gracie said.

So, Gracie isn't the mystery roomie.

"Well," Gracie said as she moved her duffel bag to a bed, "I overheard one of the teachers talking to some kids and they said art starts tomorrow. They wanted us to get settled in."

"Oh, I was wondering about that," Swirl said.

Lost nodded, even though she had totally forgotten about art. She watched Gracie start unpacking her duffel bag and neatly refold her clothes.

Suddenly, a loud crackle came from overhead. There was sounds of static before a voice started speaking from the speaker in the top corner of the room.

"Hello again, students! I hope your all getting settled in your dorms and getting to know each other. I can already tell that this year will be a year to remember," Headmaster Clark said, cheerfully. "Just so you all know, some parents have come with all your belongings. I suggest that whoever doesn't have any luggage should make your way down to the lobby. You will meet your parents there. Thank you and as we say in Jamaasian High, jam on!"

The speakers went silent. Lost could hear a couple of doors closing and the pounding of running feet.

"I should go get my stuff," Lost said, pulling herself to her feet. She made her way to the door, quietly shutting it behind her. She went down the stairs to the main lobby. The bird statue glowed mystically.

Lost slipped and slid over to the doors. Marble floor sure was slippery!

Lost peered through the glass doors, noticing how spotless they were. Whoever cleaned the school certainly deserved a pay raise!

Seeing her mom, Lost pushed the door open and took a deep breath. The air smelled cleaner here than it did back at home.

Mom walked up the front steps with a smile on her face and holding a brown suitcase. She put it down and pulled Lost into a hug.

"How are you? How's the school? Do you like your dorm?" Mom asked.

"I'm fine, school's great, and I love my dorm. It's so weird though, there's like, famous people here!" Lost exclaimed.

"Hmm, interesting," Mom replied. "Well, I probably should let you go. It's most likely going to be supper soon."

Lost nodded and picked up her suitcase. "Thanks for bringing this, Mom."

"Anytime!" Mom smiled. "Bye, sweetie!"

Lost waved before turning back around and walking inside. She hurriedly made her way back up to her dorm room.

As she reached her dorm room door, it opened and Swirl and Gracie marched out.

"Where are you guys going?" Lost asked, confused.

"Oh, while you were out getting your stuff, the supper bell rang. It's time to go down to the cafeteria," Swirl replied.

"Go ahead and put your stuff in the room. We'll wait for you," Gracie added.

Lost nodded and quickly put her suitcase down on the carpet beside her bed. She'd have to unpack later.

The three girls made their way down the stairs. Lost could hear the clatter of dishes and smelt the aroma of food as they walked up to the cafeteria door. Lost quickly grabbed the handle and held it open for Swirl and Gracie.

"You guys wanna sit at the same table, right?" Gracie asked.

Lost nodded. The idea of trying to find another spot with a group of people she didn't know didn't sound like the ideal plan.

The girls walked up to the end of the line, waiting for their turn. Lost peered past the line to see what was being served.

"Oh yum!" Swirl exclaimed. "Meatballs and spaghetti!"

Lost moved up in the line and grabbed a yellow tray. The serving lady raised a giant spoonful of spaghetti and plopped it down on a plate. Lost cringed at the huge amount.

After getting meatballs and water, Lost made her way to the table where Swirl and Gracie sat at. Just as she sat down, a girl pulled up a chair next to Gracie.

"Ja!" Gracie yelled. "How've you been?"

"Hi Gracie! I haven't seen you since this morning!" Ja said. She wore one silver glove and a red-brown jacket. It had a bow and arrow design on the front.

"So, guess what? I was really hoping to be in a dorm with you and it turns out, I'm in the same room as Sarah! Fancy that, huh?" Ja continued.

"Really? That's such a coincidence!" Gracie said.

"Ja is Sarah's sister, by the way, Lost," Gracie explained, turning towards Lost.

"Which dorm are you in? Maybe it's close to mine!" Ja said excitedly.

"Um, I think it's room number twenty-six. Right, guys?" Gracie said.

"Oh neat! Mine's room thirty! We're just a little ways away from each other." Ja replied.

Lost speared a meatball with her fork and chewed it thoughtfully. So many people already knew each other it seemed. Maybe they had all gone to the same schools before.

All of a sudden, a loud noise came from the far side of the room. Lost looked up and saw a small stage with a microphone. Headmaster Clark tapped it gently and waited for everyone to notice him. Slowly, the room got quiet. The students looked at him expectantly.

"Well, weren't those meatballs great?" Headmaster Clark said. "Anyway, I just want to let everyone know that tonight, you're all free to do whatever you want. You can go to the library or hang out in the games room. But lights out is at ten. Please be at your dorm then. Have a great evening!"

As he walked off the stage, the chatter began again. Lost looked around and noticed Wisteriamoon over near Julian. They sure seemed awfully close.

"Well!" Swirl said, banging the table with her hand. "What's the plan for tonight?"

"Hey, Gracie? Can you come with me and go to the games room? I told Sarah I'd meet her there." Ja said.

Gracie nodded. "I can go. If that's okay with you two." She looked at Swirl and Lost.

"Go ahead! Have fun," Swirl replied.

"So. What's the plan now?" Swirl said, turning her head to look at Lost.

"I don't know. We only have a few hours. Want to go hang out at the library?" Lost suggested.

"Sure! Let's go!" Swirl said.

The two girls walked through the cafeteria. Lost listened to random bits of chatter as she passed by tables.

She suddenly noticed that she was going past a table where Aparri and Bepper were seated at. She noticed Aparri put his arm around Bepper in a friendly sort of way. Maybe they were related to each other? They both did have the same dark brown hair.

Before she knew it, Lost found herself in the library.

It had huge bookshelves in every direction. Dark green tables were set up so students could study. The walls and floor were dark brown wood. The shelves were mahogany and full of books in all shapes and sizes. Lost couldn't tell how big the room was, shelves blocked her view. The air seemed to have an ancient feel to it. Lost couldn't put her finger on what made it feel like that.

Lost took a deep breath. She loved the smell of libraries. All those books in their shelves just waiting to get picked up! All those adventures ready to be read. Yes, Lost sure did love a good library.

* * *

Lost looked up at the giant clock high up on the wall. It was almost lights out.

"We should go," Lost said, closing and putting the book she was reading back onto the shelf.

Swirl nodded and the girls walked out of the library, up the stairs and down the halls to their dorm. Lost was so tired, she could have slept right then and there!

As Swirl pushed the door open, Lost saw a girl with black hair sitting on a bed.

Aha! Our mystery roomie!

"Oh hi there!" Swirl said brightly.

The girl looked up at us and smiled. "Hi."

"I'm Swirlshine. This here is Lostfairy. Gracie is our other roomie. She's not here yet," Swirl continued.

"I'm Fangwolf. But my nickname is Fang," Fang said, brushing a wave of dark hair behind an ear. Fang had red streaks in her hair that worked really well with the black. She had a mini black and white top hat perched on her head. A matching black necklace and bracelet with white studs were on her neck and wrist. A dark red jacket finished the look.

"Hello!" Gracie said, bounding into the room. She walked over to Fang and stuck out her hand. "I'm Gracie!"

Fang smiled and shook Gracie's hand. "I'm Fang."

Lost walked over to her bed and flopped down on it. She was exhausted from the long day.

"Well, we should all go to bed," Swirl suggested. "It'll be another long day tomorrow."

Gracie and Fang nodded and started getting ready for bed. Lost groaned softly, stood up again, and took out her toothbrush.

After she had brushed her teeth and changed into pajamas, Lost snuggled into her warm covers. She watched Swirl brush her brown hair, Fang hop into a bed, and Gracie put on hand lotion.

"Ready for lights out?" Swirl asked. She ran over and flipped off the light. Lost heard her bed rustle as she leaped into it.

"Goodnight guys!" Gracie said in the darkness.

There was a chorus of goodnights and then the room went silent.

Lost stared at the ceiling and sighed happily. She pulled her blanket close around her.

Today, she had survived Jamaasian High. The question now was, could she survive the next day as well?

Chapter 4 - Trying to Fit in Isn't as Easy as it Looks

Lost walked out of the gym, still disappointed she had made her team lose. She pulled off her backpack, opened it, and dug around for her schedule. Finally finding it, she checked to see what was her next class.

Hm, history. Should be interesting.

She wandered her way through the busy crowd. There were loud shrieks coming from down the hall.

Probably Aparri. Or Wisteriamoon. Or someone else.

Lost reached her history class and walked into the room. She was the only one in room except for one girl who was writing in her notebook.

Lost sat at the desk near a window and set her backpack down. She glanced at the girl who looked like she was concentrating hard on whatever she was writing.

"Um, hi," Lost said, breaking the silence.

The girl looked up and stared at Lost.

"Um, never mind, you can keep on doing... what you were doing," Lost said, embarrassed.

"No, no. It's fine," the girl replied, pushing a strand of caramel colored hair from her face. "I just didn't realize you were going to talk to me."

"I'm Lostfairy."

"I'm Fluffykittenlover," Fluffy said.

Lost shifted around in her chair, trying to think of something else to say.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Lost asked.

"Sure, shoot," Fluffy said.

"What were you doing in your notebook?" Lost said, hoping she didn't sound rude.

"Oh, I was just doodling, waiting for class to start," Fluffy said, showing her notebook a little.

"Oh, ok! You're pretty good at drawing. My art is kinda whatever," Lost said.

"No, I bet your artwork is better!" Fluffy insisted. "Like, better times infinity."

"I don't think so. Here, I think I have some of my drawings with me." Lost opened her backpack and started searching for her doodling notebook that she had brought along.

"Here." Lost handed the notebook to Fluffy. "Be warned, the first pages are really bad. I started the notebook when I was a little kid, so they suck."

Fluffy opened up to the first page and looked as if she was about to laugh. "Sorry, it's pretty good for a kid, though!"

"It's totally fine!" Lost said.

Fluffy continued flipping through, laughing at some. She got to the end and pointed at a drawing of a dog.

"This is way better than my art!" Fluffy said.

"No, no. Yours is great!" Lost replied just as a steady stream of kids started coming into the classroom.

Fluffy handed the notebook back to Lost, who put it back into her backpack. Fluffy smiled at Lost who smiled back.

Some people in this school are so nice!

After the last few kids had come through, a man strolled into the room and stood in front of the black board.

He had black hair that was almost dark blue. He seemed to have this 'I'm better than you all' kind of look to his stern face. He had a thick dark gold colored chain around his neck.

"Hello, everyone," he said gruffly. "I will be your history teacher for the year."

He grabbed a piece of chalk and wrote his name on the blackboard. "My name is Mr. Greely. Today, we will be learning the history about our country, Jamaa."

He turned back to the class. "I don't expect any one you to pass this class. But still, I will try to get you to learn something."

What's up this guy?

Mr. Greely went over to a table at the side of the room and grabbed a big stack of books. He walked over to the desks and started handing them out.

"This will be your history book for the year. So I would suggest that you shouldn't lose it. Other whys, you pay for it," Mr. Greely said.

He finished handing the books out to the class and went back to his desk.

"Open your books to page one," Mr. Greely said, even though all the kids already knew that that is where you start a book.

Lost opened her heavy, leather book and noticed the pages seemed old and musty. They were yellow, almost brown, with age.

You'd think schoolbooks would be in better care.

"A long, long time ago, a brave woman set forth into an unexplored land we all know today as Jamaa. This explorers name was Mira and her trusty companion was named Zios. He helped her discover this land. Strangely, Mira didn't have anyone to help her with her travels. No big group. Just one man." Mr. Greely cleared his throat before continuing.

"Mira's diaries were found years after she died. In them, she always wondered why this strange land had so many different climates. Cold and warm. Desert and forest. She and Zios tried to figure it out but couldn't. We still don't know how it is possible but it somehow is." Mr. Greely drawled.

"We don't even know when Mira started her expedition. The date had been smudged away in her diaries. We will never know. All we know is where she started her expedition, Crystal Sands. Mira had been sailing with Zios on her grand voyage to the unknown. In her diary, she says she never feared what she would find because she had Zios at her side.

"Now, I have an assignment for you," Mr. Greely said. "You will draw the whole map of Jamaa. By hand. No computers allowed. If you use one, you will certainly fail.

The bell rung and Mr. Greely sighed before saying, "Tomorrow, we will be learning about the dangers Mira found in Jamaa. Be sure to finish your assignment by tomorrow."

Lostfairy stood up and grabbed her backpack. She glanced at Fluffy.

"What class do you have next?" Lost asked, curious.

"I have lunch. What do you have?" Fluffy said.

"Oh, me too!" Lost said.

Lost and Fluffy walked out of the classroom together towards the cafeteria, through the crowds of students.

When they got to the cafeteria, they pushed the doors open and Lost gaped at the sight.

There were tons and tons and tons of students. At the tables, in the lunch line, everywhere. The room was big and open. The tables were all made with a nice light coloring wood. The floor was like the floor in the entryway, marble. Vines grew from the walls and big windows made the room full light.

Fluffy said goodbye to Lost as she walked over to the lunch line to buy food.

Lost gulped and walked over to the quietest table she could find. There were a couple of kids here but they all ignored her.

Lost glanced around and noticed the girl across from her was reading a book. Lost moved her head lower to see what it was. It read 'Sherlock Holmes' . The girl peered over her book, chewing on a cheesy piece of pizza.

Lost quickly moved her head back up, hoping she didn't look weird.

The girl smiled through the cheese and swallowed.

"Hi!" she said, brushing down her white dress. She had nice tan skin, like she had been outside for a while. Her hair was brown and looked great against her skin.

"Hey," Lost said, opening up her lunch bag. "Is that book good? I absolutely love books!"

"It's a GREAT mystery!" the girl said, bobbing her head up and down. "I'm Karalee, by the way. Or sometimes I go by DXplorergirl. What's your name?"

"I'm Lostfairy," Lost said. She then noticed another girl reading a book. It was a Bryan Davis book.

"Hey, my siblings love Bryan Davis," Lost said to the girl.

The girl looked up and smiled. "I love his books too! I'm Sarahkey. Oh, have you guys heard of Owl City? His music is super good!"

"Yeah! I listen to his music all the time," Lost said as she took her lunch out of the bag.

Man, this is a great table!

Sarah grinned and gazed over to the other side of the cafeteria. Lost turned to see what she was staring at. She couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, just a big crowd of kids around a small area.

"What are you looking at, Sarah?" Lost asked.

Sarah blinked and looked at Lost before smiling. "Oh, I just saw Julian. As in, the most awesome, popular guy here."

Who even is Julian?

"Um, sorry but who is Julian?" Lost said, biting into her sandwich.

"He's the most awesome-"

"I think she meant which guy over there is Julian. Because there are tons of people in this school and Lost here is new, right?" Karalee cut in.

"Ohh! Well, he's sitting over there." Sarah said pointing. "He has this curly kind of hair and he's wearing brown. Do you see him?"

Lost searched for a guy who fit the description. She finally noticed a guy who had curly, dirty blond-ish hair in the middle of a crowd. He was trying to eat his lunch and sign autographs at the same time.

What's up with this school and 'famous' people?

Lost turned back to her lunch and continued eating. She then felt a hard poke on her shoulder from behind her.

"Yes?" Lost sighed, turning around.

A boy with a weird spiked collar around his neck kept poking her.

"Yes?" Lost asked louder.

"Hey, do you want my tuna sandwich for your chicken sandwich? It's totally fair." the boy asked.

"Um, no thank you." Lost said, confused.

"C'mon! It's totally fair! My tuna sandwich is worth your sandwich. Here, I'll ask my buddy." the boy said.

"No. I don't really want to switch my lunch around. Sorry." Lost said, turning around.

The boy groaned and walked over to another table.

 "That was weird." Lost said to Sarah and Karalee.

"No, it's normal around here." Karalee replied. "You'll get used to it."

"Well, I have to go." Lost said, putting her bag into the trashcan.

"Where are you going?" Sarah asked.

"I have to go to the office and ask which dorm I'm getting and when I should bring my stuff in." Lost explained.

"Okay, see you later, Lost!" Sarah said, waving.

Lost pushed her through the cafeteria and out into the hallway. She walked down the hall towards the office.

As she wandered down the halls, she thought of the first part of the day's events. Famous people being everywhere. Finding great people. Failing dodgeball. Having a great lunch table. In all, it was a pretty good start to school.

Lost finally stood in front of the office door and opened the door. The same lady Lost had seen earlier was still at the desk.

"Um, excuse me. Do you know when I can get my stuff to my dorm or when I get to even know which dorm I'm in?" Lost asked.

The lady looked up and smiled. "You haven't found out yet? Oh, that's okay," she said.

She looked down at her computer and clicked the mouse a few times before looking back up at Lost.

"What's your name again, sugar?"

"I'm Lostfairy."

The lady made some more clicks with the mouse and typed on the keyboard of a little bit. She grabbed a sticky note and wrote down something before handing the paper to Lost.

"This here is your dorm room number. And you can bring your stuff down to your dorm after all the classes," the lady said.

"Thanks. Can I phone my mom and tell her that she can bring my stuff over after school?" Lost asked.

"Sure thing." The lady grabbed the phone and gave it to Lost.

Lost dialed her mom's number and waited. Her mom picked up after three rings.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mom."

"Oh, hi, sweetie!"

"Uh, Mom, I found out when you can bring my stuff over for my dorm. Just bring it over after school ends, okay?"

"Okay, Lostfairy. How is school? Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it's cool. I've met some cool people here."

"That's so good!"

"Uh, Mom, I got to go, the bell just rung and this school is really big so it takes a while getting from place to place."

"Okay, bye!"

"Bye."

Lost hung up and pushed the phone over the desk to the lady.

"You better go to your class, Lostfairy," the lady said, smiling.

Lost nodded and ran out of the room into the hallway. She then realized that she didn't know what her next class was.

Lost shrugged her backpack off her back and dug inside for her schedule. After finally finding it, Lost looked over it.

Hmm, math next. Peachy.