Chapter 11 - Playing Around

Lost looked around the table at her dorm room friends, Swirl, Gracie, and Fang. It was supper and the whole day seemed to be a big blur for Lost.

"So," Lost said, spooning some soup into her mouth. "What do you want to do tonight?"

"Well, I hear the games room is cool. Maybe we could hang out and play some games?" Fang suggested.

"Oh! Good idea!" Gracie replied as she buttered her bread.

"Apparently Aparri will be there as well," Swirl said, grinning. "Maybe we should get his autograph and be, like, famous."

Lost laughed. "An autograph from some dude at school? I'll pass."

Swirl stood up and looked at each girl in turn. "Ready to go?"

There was a chorus of "yes" and "sure" as the girls got up and marched out of the cafeteria.

"Um, where is the games room?" Lost said, unsure.

"I know! I've been there before. It's that way," Fang said, pointing down the hall.

The girls slowly trailed down the hall, laughing and chattering.

"Oh, hey," Lost said, suddenly remembering something. "Did you guys hear about the fight?"

"What fight?" Gracie gasped.

"I heard about it," Swirl said, slowly. "Apparently, two guys got quite upset about something. From what I heard, it sounded like one of them had 'stolen' some item from the other."

"Is that even true?" Lost gaped.

"No clue. Just rumors, I suppose," Swirl shrugged.

"Do you know who they were?" Fang asked.

"Hey! Guys! Wait up!" a girl called from behind them.

The girls whirled around and saw Ja running up to them.

"Wow," Ja panted. "You guys are fast."

"We were just walking," Lost giggled. "But what's up, Ja?"

"A couple of things, actually!" Ja said. "First, I wanted to come with you. You're going to the games room, right?"

"Second," Ja said, continuing after Swirl nodded. "You know that fight that happened earlier today?"

"We were just talking about it! Do you know who the boys were?" Gracie asked.

"Yeah! 'Cause it was my brother who was the one who got stolen from!" Ja announced.

The other girls stared at Ja.

"Huh?!" they all cried in unison.

"Woah, did you plan on that?" Ja laughed. "Anyway, yeah, my brother got stolen from. From some dude who usually hangs out with Fman."

"Ugh," Lost said, remembering playing dodgeball with him.

"Wait, wait!" Gracie said, holding up her hands. "Which brother? Tox or Pob?"

"Pob was the one who got stolen from. Tox actually ran and got the HQ," Ja explained.

"Ooooh!" Lost exclaimed. "I saw your brother run and get them. Everyone was so upset that he got the HQ."

"Oh really?" Ja said, clenching her fists. "That is just SO wrong! How is helping bad?"

Swirl shrugged. "Maybe they were friends with that stealer?"

"C'mon, guys. Let's go before it gets full!" Fang said, teasingly tugging Lost's arm.

All five girls continued down the hall and into the room marked "Games Room."

Lost looked around the room. All around were tables and chairs set up. A couple of pool, air hockey, Ping-Pong, and foosball tables were in rows close to the door. A small table was set up on the right that had a sign that read "Autographs." In the back of the room were other tables that had board and card games. On the left were cozy, brown couches with pillows spread neatly on them.

But the strange thing was, the room was empty.

"Woo!" Ja cried, racing around the room. "We have the whole room to ourselves!"

Lost laughed. "What, you wanna play tag?"

"No," Ja grinned, slowing down near the Ping-Pong table. "Hey, let's play this together!"

"But there's five of us and only four rackets," Fang pointed out.

"That's ok! I'll be a score keeper," Gracie said, cheerfully.

"I'm on Swirl's team!" Lost said, jumping up and down.

"I'll be on Ja's team then," Fang smiled.

As the girls played and laughed, the room slowly got fuller. Soon, almost all the tables were occupied.

"Okay!" Gracie announced. "Ja and Fang won!"

"Aw, good job!" Swirl said, beaming. "But you gotta admit, me and Lost did pretty good."

Lost laughed and gave Swirl a high-five. "Ooh! Let's do what they do in "Austin and Ally."

Swirl and Lost high-fived again and then did a fist bump. "What up!" Lost said, giggling.

"You watch that show too?" Swirl said.

All of a sudden, the door room flew open with a loud BAM. Lost looked up and saw Aparri march into the room with a herd of kids following behind him. Some even had caps that looked like... cheese?!

"Yo!" Aparri said as he sat down behind the table that was for autographs "If you want an autograph from your boy Aparri, just come over here and line up!"

A shriek came from a cluster of girls that were sitting on the couch. They jumped up and bolted over to the table with pieces of paper out, ready for an autograph.

"Wow. Just wow," Lost rolled her eyes.

"Do you guys want an autograph?" Ja asked. "Because I kinda do. Just for fun, you know?"

"It's fine, go ahead," Swirl grinned.

As Ja ran over and stood in line, Lost felt someone tap her on the shoulder.

"Yes?" Lost turned around and saw Gfox, the girl she had met at breakfast.

"Hi Lost! Remember me?" Gfox asked, smiling.

"Yeah, of course! Good to see you again!" Lost exclaimed. "Have you met my friends before?"

"No, I don't think so!" Gfox said, looking shyly over at Swirl, Gracie, and Fang.

"This is Swirl," Lost said, pointing to each girl in turn. "This is Gracie and this here is Fang. They're my dorm twenty-six girls."

"Hi!" Gracie said, shaking Gfox's hand.

"I'm baaaack!" Ja sang, coming over. She then noticed Gfox. "Oh, hi! I'm Ja!"

"I'm Gfox," Gfox smiled.

"How many autographs did you get?!" Lost said, staring at the small pile of paper in Ja's hand.

"Um, one for me, Sarah, Tox, Pob, and then one for each of you guys," Ja said sheepishly. "Good thing I got an extra, I didn't know Gfox would be here!"

"Aww, that's really sweet of you!" Lost said as Ja handed out the autographs.

"It was nothing," Ja shrugged, blushing slightly.

Lost yawned and brushed her long bangs aside. "Well, I dunno about you, but I am tired. I think I'm heading up to my dorm to chill for a while."

"Sounds like a good plan!" Gracie said. "Ja and Gfox, wanna hang out in our dorm?"

"Sure!" Ja and Gfox said at the same time and then laughed.

The six girls wandered out of the games room, down the hall, up the stairs, and up to room number twenty-six. Fang took out her key and unlocked the door, holding it open for everyone.

Lost went straight to her bed and plopped down, sighing happily. "I. Am. Tired!"

"Me as well," Swirl yawned.

Swirl, Gracie, and Fang went to their beds and sat down.

"Feel free to sit on any bed," Gracie said to Ja and Gfox.

As Swirl took of her ever-pleasant wizard hat, Ja flew across the room and sat down next to Swirl.

"Can I try your hat on?" Ja said, doing puppy-dog eyes.

"Sure!" Swirl laughed.

Gfox walked over and sat down on the edge of Lost's bed. "What do you guys wanna do now?"

Just as Lost was about to open her mouth, a loud knocking came from behind the door.

Fang got up and opened the door. "Hello?"

"Hi, is my sister here?" a girl's voice said. Lost tried to see who it was but Fang was standing in the way.

"Uh, depends on who your sister is," Fang replied.

"Her name is Ja," the girl said.

"Sarah?" Ja said, bounding over to the door.

"Ja! How could you just leave me?" Sarah said dramatically. "Me and Karalee were worried!"

"Sorry!" Ja said. "I thought you knew where I was going."

"It's almost time for bed, wanna go back to our dorm?" Sarah asked.

"Okay, sure," Ja replied, handing the wizard hat back to Swirl. "Thanks for letting me hang out, guys!"

"Goodnight, Ja!" Gracie called from her bed.

"I should go too," Gfox said, hopping off Lost's bed. "Bye guys!"

Fang shut the door after Sarah, Ja, and Gfox left. "You guys wanna go to bed now?"

"I'm good with that," Swirl said, pulling her pajamas out of her bag.

After half an hour or so, all the girls had brushed their teeth, changed into pajamas, and were in their beds. Swirl jumped out of bed and flipped the light switch. She then ran and jumped into bed.

"Goodnight, dorm twenty-six girls," Lost said, smiling in the dark.

"Goodnight!" they said in unison.

As the room got quiet, Lost snuggled into her covers and sighed a happy sigh.

Yet again, school was fun and busy. I'm so glad I have such good friends with me.

 I can't wait see what tomorrow has in store!

Chapter 10 - Second Star to the Right

"Well, have a delightful rest of your day, children!" Ms. Peck called over the loud chiming of the bell. Lost grabbed her backpack, slung it over her shoulder, and marched out of class, moving with the flow of students.

Already knowing where she was supposed to go, Lost pushed past kids as she wandered up to a set of stairs that would lead to the third floor.

Before school had started, Lost had signed up online to go to Jamaasian High. As she was going through the long process, she had picked a bonus class to go to at the end of the day.

Off to my first day of drama!

Lost hurried up the stairs and down the hall. She reached a door with a huge piece of cardboard paper that said in bold writing: "To be in drama or not to be, that is the question! Drama - Ms. Tavie."

Smirking, Lost pushed the door open and then stopped in her tracks and gaped. The room before her was looked like a Broadway show could take place here. The majestic burgundy curtains hung on a huge stage. Sets of gray cushioned chairs were in rows all around the room.

All of a sudden, Lost heard a loud cough come from behind the curtain. Lost gasped as the red material moved and shifted around. Then, a woman stepped out onto the stage and coughed again.

"Sorry to startle you!" the woman said. "There's just so much dust!" She waved her hand through the air, as if to a prove a point.

"That's ok," Lost said, walking over to the stage.

"And who might you be?" the woman said, brushing back her light brown hair, messing up her pearled headband. She also wore a light purple dress with a pretty dolphin on the front.

"I'm Lostfairy," Lost replied.

"I am Ms. Tavie!" Ms. Tavie said with a flourish.

The door opened again and a herd of students came and sat down in the chairs near the stage. Lost stood in front of the stage awkwardly, not knowing where to sit.

"Lost! Over here!" a girl called from a few rows away from the stage.

Lost looked up and saw Purplestarclub sitting with Penguin. Purple gestured her to come over.

After making her way past some seats, Lost plopped down beside Purple.

"So, you're in drama?" Lost said, quickly blushing at how silly the question sounded.

"Yup. I hope to work with the sets. You know, paint them and stuff," Purple replied.

"What about you, Penguin?" Lost asked, moving forward so she could see past Purple.

"I really don't want to act. I would rather work with the sets, like Purple. Except, not paint," Penguin explained.

Lost nodded. She didn't prefer going onstage either. Made her feel queasy just thinking about it. But she had done acting once before and it wasn't too bad. Though maybe it was because she didn't have many lines...

"LOST!" a loud yell broke though Lost's train of thought. Lost looked up and grinned when she saw it was Swirl.

"Hi Swirl! I can't believe we have drama together!" Lost exclaimed.

"I know. Right?" Swirl sat down next to Lost, eagerly looking around. She whistled long and loud when she saw the massive stage. "That is one big stage!"

Just as Lost was about to reply, a powerful clap sounded out throughout the room. Lost looked up and saw Ms. Tavie onstage again.

"May I have all your attention?" Ms. Tavie asked, her voice louder because of a microphone.

As the chattered quieted, she began speaking again.

"Welcome to your first drama class! I am your teacher, Ms. Tavie. You may not call me Tavie or Ms. Dolphin or any other sort of silly name you come up with. There will be no dawdling or rude behavior. And above all, you must be ready to take on whatever dramatic thing that comes your way. Understood?" Ms. Tavie stopped pacing and stared at all the students.

The room rippled with a bunch of "sure" and "ok" and Lost even heard someone call out "yes madam!"

Satisfied, Ms. Tavie continued. "Every year, us drama class puts on a few different glorious plays. The first production that we will do is the very well known story of..."

Ms. Tavie paused and then said triumphantly, "Peter Pan!"

Lost couldn't believe her ears. Peter Pan was her favorite classic fairy tale of all time. She loved it's funny sense of humor and everything about it!

"So, in a couple of days, we will have auditions. Everyone will be assigned to their role. Today, we will just practice for the audition! Come up to the stage to get the lines for the play and then split into groups. Plan on who you wish to be!"

Lost turned to Swirl quickly. "You should try out for Wendy!"

"Me? Why me? What about you?" Swirl said as she stood up.

"Well, I don't want to be the main character. And you'd be perfect for the role!" Lost replied, following Swirl to the front to get their lines.

"Hmm, maybe. It'd be fun to try out for the lead role..." Swirl said thoughtfully. Her frown slowly turned into a huge grin and she nodded. "Okay. I'll try out for Wendy!"

"Yay!" Lost said, beaming. "You'll make a great Wendy!"

"Who will you be?" Swirl asked. "I don't even know who's all in Peter Pan!"

Lost quickly sorted out all the characters she could be. "Well, there's Mrs. Darling and Nana, though I would rather not be a dog. There's Tigerlily the princess and Liza the maid I hardly remember..." Lost trailed off. "Oh wait! There's also Tinkerbell! And I could possibly be one of the many Lost Boys or pirates."

"Hmm, there's a lot of people. You could be a brown haired Tinkerbell! You even have the word 'fairy' in your name! You are destined to be Tinkerbell!" Swirl declared as she handed Lost her a piece of paper.

Lost chuckled and grabbed her lines. "Maybe. Being Tinkerbell would be fun. Except for two things."

"What?" Swirl asked.

"One, her favorite thing to say is quite odd," Lost said, ticking off the numbers with her fingers. "Two, that would mean I have to try over and over to kill you. I mean, Wendy!"

"Really? I don't remember that at all!" Swirl said, laughing. "You should still try out for Tinkerbell!"

Lost thought about it. Tinkerbell didn't have lots of lines, which was perfect for Lost. Yet, everyone loved Tinkerbell.

"Okay! I'll try out for her," Lost said.

Lost and Swirl wandered over to two empty chairs. Lost flipped through her papers and then stopped as a thought struck her.

"Oh no!" Lost groaned and put her head in her hands.

"What is it?" Swirl asked worriedly.

"I just realized that if I get cast as Tinkerbell, I'll have to pretend to love whoever Peter Pan is. What if it's some gross guy?" Lost said dramatically.

"Oh don't worry!" Swirl said. "It's not like you have to kiss him or something, right?"

"No. But still!" Lost replied.

"You'll be fine. Now, which scene do you want to practice? One with Tinkerbell and Wendy, right?" Swirl suggested.

"Hm," Lost leafed through the pages and then stopped on one. "There isn't very many with them both but how about the one where Tinkerbell gets one of the Lost Boys to shoot Wendy down from the sky?"

"Sure!" Swirl cleared her throat and began to say her first lines.

After a few minutes of practicing, a voice startled them both.

"You're trying out for Wendy?"

Lost looked up and saw Wisteriamoon standing next to their chairs and looking directly at Swirl.

"Um, yes?" Swirl replied uneasily.

"If I were you, I'd pick a different role," Wisteria said sweetly.

"Why?" Lost asked. "She can try out for anyone she wants!"

"Yes, but it'd be all in vain to try out for Wendy. You know why?" Wisteria said.

Swirl shrugged. "How come?"

"Because I am trying out for Wendy and no one beats Wisteriamoon." Wisteria said proudly, adding emphasis to 'moon.'

She then turned on her heels and headed off to a gaggle of girls. They immediately started chattering and laughing.

"The nerve of that girl!" Lost muttered angrily. "Want me to go punch her or something?"

Swirl laughed. "No, it's fine. Just ignore her."

"So, what are you going to do?" Lost asked.

"I'm going to still try out for Wendy! Who cares if she thinks that just because she's famous means that everyone obeys her?"

"Agreed," Lost smiled. "Okay, let's back to practicing."

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 8 - Good Morning Jamaasian High

Lost woke up to find sunlight streaming down out of the big window onto her face. She moaned and sat up, squinting her eyes.

 

Lost looked at all her room mates, each in turn. Swirl was curled up in her blankets with a little smile on her face. Gracie had her face stuffed into her pillow and one of her arms flopped out of the bed. Fang was lying perfectly still on her back with the blankets pulled over her face.



Smiling, Lost turned to look at the clock on her side table next to her bed. It shouted six-thirty at her in bold red light.

Sinking back into her fluffy covers, Lost stared at the ceiling, wondering what to do while she waited for her roomies to wake up.

An idea struck her. Lost quietly turned over and opened her backpack, cringing at the noises her zipper made. She pushed some books aside and grabbed her sketchbook and pencil.

Lost flipped the sketchbook open and tapped her pencil thoughtfully on her chin.

"Ughhhh," a voice groaned from Gracie's side of the room. Lost glanced up, surprised. Gracie then rolled over and her other arm flopped down on the other side of the bed.

Lost grinned and start sketching four people. She was going to draw her and her room mates together.

Half hour passed when Swirl yawned and lifted her arms, stretching. Lost watched as Swirl sat up and looked around. She smiled at Lost and Lost gestured to come over to her bed.

Swirl got up slowly, walked over to Lost's bed, and jumped under the covers with Lost.

"What are you drawing?" Swirl asked quietly.

"You. Well, all of us," Lost said. She pushed her sketchbook over for Swirl to see.

Swirl looked eagerly and did a thumbs up gesture. "That's so cool!"

Gracie made another noise from her side of the room. Swirl and Lost glanced over at her bed and then back at each other. They both grinned and suddenly, they just lost it. Lost quickly stuffed her face in the covers but she kept on giggling. Swirl kept on making funny noises as she tried to stop.

The noise woke up Fang. She sat up and looked at Lost and Swirl who were still laughing. She cocked her head, confused.

Swirl just shook her head and snickered. Lost still had her head in a blanket.

Gracie all of a sudden woke up and sat up quickly.

"What's going on?" she asked, sleepily.

Lost finally got control of herself and lifted her head. "You just were making funny noises and well, it wasn't that funny but I guess I'm hyper!"

Gracie laughed. "I was making noises? Like what?"

Swirl stopped laughing and started mimicking the noises Gracie had made. But Swirl was still gasping from laughing so hard so all she did was wheeze.

All the girls looked at each other and burst out laughing. Lost beamed.

I sure have some awesome room mates!

After they all caught their breath, Gracie got up out of her bed and started rummaging through her backpack.

"I have something for you guys," Gracie said as she stood up again. She lifted up her hand and Lost could see that four gold chains were dangling down. Swirl gasped and raced out of Lost's bed.

"What, really? You bought necklaces for us?" Swirl said. "They are SO cute!"

Each necklace had a dainty gold chain with a jewel pendent on the end. All four had different colors for the pendant. There was an orange, a red, a turquoise, and an emerald.

"Yup! I bought one for each of us. I didn't know which room mates I'd get so I wasn't so sure on buying them. But then my mom said I should just buy them and give them to whoever I get," Gracie replied. "I hope you like them!"

"I do!" Swirl gushed. "Can I pick one?"

Gracie nodded and Swirl reached out and took the one with the turquoise pendant.

Fang and Lost got up and looked that other necklaces. Lost thought they were all pretty.

"May I take the red?" Fang asked.

"Sure thing! Take whichever you want!" Gracie said.

Fang picked up the red pendant and walked back to her bed, admiring the necklace.

Lost thoughtfully looked at the other necklaces. She really liked the emerald colored one and it would bring out the little bit of green in her eyes.

Lost lift the emerald one and watched it as it shone in the sunlight. "I like this one."

"Then I'll take the orange one!" Gracie said happily.

Lost went back to her suitcase next to her bed and pulled out a green skirt and a gray shirt to go with it. It matched very nicely with the emerald pendant.

Swirl marched out of the bathroom, fully dressed and ready to go. She grabbed her wizard hat and plopped it down on her head with satisfaction.

Lost ducked into the bathroom and quickly changed and brushed the many knots and tangles out of her hair.

Just as she went out of the bathroom, the speakers let out a series of crackles.

"Hello and goooood morning!" Headmaster Clark said way too cheerily for seven in the morning. "I hope you all feel rested because today is going to be a fun, full day! Breakfast is in half an hour! Be sure to go down to the cafeteria. There, I will give out a few announcements. Jam on!"

Gracie rushed into the bathroom shouting, "I need more time! I have to do my pigtails!"

The door slammed shut. Lost started making her bed, trying to get it to look as good as it had before she had slept in it. After she struggled with that, she shoved her sketchbook back into her backpack.

A few minutes later, Gracie marched out of the bathroom with her hair in neat pigtails. Fang quickly ran into the bathroom so she could get changed as well.

Gracie sat on her bed, contemplating on which neck item to wear. Her orange scarf or her necklace. She finally decided on the necklace and quickly put it on.

"How does it look?" Gracie asked. The orange pendant stood out on the white and gray shirt.

"Lookin' good!" Swirl said.

Lost nodded and put her own green pendant necklace on. She noted Swirl had hers on as well.

"Ten minutes, let's go!" Fang exclaimed as she rushed out of the bathroom and dumped her pajamas on her bed.

The girls hurriedly put their shoes and ran out of their dorm, through the halls and down to the cafeteria.

"We should all sit at the same table!" Lost said after they gone through the line and got their homemade porridge.

The girls all nodded and sat down at an empty table. Lost looked around and noticed Bepper standing in the line with Wisteria. They seemed to be very good friends.

"Hey, can I invite Karalee, Sarah, and Ja to sit at our table?" Gracie asked.

Hey, I know all of those people! Maybe I'm getting the hang out this boarding school stuff.

"Sure!" Fang said.

Gracie got up and wandered into the crowd.

"Did she even see them or is she just looking?" Swirl asked, confused.

Lost shrugged and started digging into her porridge. She was pretty upset there wasn't any chocolate chips to put in it.

"I'm back! With the pack! Hey, that rhymed!" Gracie said, sitting down in a chair.

Karalee, Sarah, and Ja sat down at the table and immediately started chatting among themselves.

Lost glanced up and noticed a girl brown-black wavy hair making her way over to their table. The girl reached the table and sat down next to Gracie.

"Hey Gracie!" the girl said.

Gracie turned around and grinned. "Frozen! Hi!"

Frozen was wearing pretty much all orange. A orange cap with a design of a fox face sat on her head with a fake tail at the back. Her backpack was orange and she had orange and white stripped socks. A dark orange backpack and an orange necklace with little spikes matched the look.

"Guys, this is Frozen," Gracie said. "She is part of our pack."

All the girls introduced each other and started chatting and eating porridge.

A loud SHRIEEEEEK coming from the little stage at the far end of the room made almost all the students jump and look around. A younger looking student burst out crying.

"Sorry for that!" Headmaster Clark said into the microphone on the stage. "Anyway, I have a couple of announcements for you!"

He cleared his throat before beginning. "First of all, art is starting up today so make sure you go when it says so on your schedule tells you to do so. Second, one of your fellow students wishes to give a little announcement himself! So, without further ado, Aparri, please make your way to the stage.

Headmaster Clark went down off the stage and sat down in one the chairs near the stage. Lost looked around and saw Aparri making his way to the stage looking a little nervous.

Just as he was almost at the stage, a chant started.

"A-PARR-I! A-PARR-I! A-PARR-I!" kids chanted, banging the tables with their fists.

The chant seemed to calm him down. Aparri smirked and hopped onto the stage. He stood there and waited for the chant to stop. He looked like he was enjoying it. Finally, it drifted off.

"Hey, guys. It's me, Aparri." Aparri cleared his throat and continued. "As you all probably know, I get a load of autograph requests. Like, I just stand there in the hallway and a bunch of people yell at me to give them an autograph. I'm not saying I don't like it, I love it. But some of the teachers don't like it because that makes their students late for class."

A little ripple of laughter went throughout the cafeteria. Though Lost heard a loud sigh coming from nearby. Lost looked and saw a guy in blue. Like, all blue. He had a large blue top hat on his head and wore a blue shirt. He had a large black spiked necklace of some sorts around his neck and Lost noted a huge turquoise ring on his hand. He also was wearing a large frown on his face as he glowered at Aparri.

Just as Aparri was about to continue, a loud yell came from the back of the cafeteria.

"Just stop talking already! Don't you ever stop talking for just one moment in the day?!"

Aparri seemed a little taken aback but quickly recovered. "So, instead of me signing autographs in between the classes, I will be in the games room almost every night, ready to sign some autos."

A couple of girls at the table behind Lost sighed dreamily. Lost rolled her eyes.

"Before I go, I just want to let you know that I will be having a daily giveaway," Aparri took a deep breath before continuing. "AllyouneedtodoisheadtothegamesroomtonightandthenIwilltelltherulesthen. Well, peace out!" Aparri took another deep breath from talking so fast and walked off the stage.

The room erupted into applauds and Lost clapped half-heartedly, still confused on what he had said at the last part of his speech.

Lost felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around and saw a girl with a blue flower in her light brown hair and a blue and white stripped scarf around her neck. The girl leaned closer to Lost.

"Did you catch anything of what Aparri said at the end?" the girl whispered.

"Nope. Not a word." Lost whispered back.

"I'm Gfox, by the way." Gfox said softly.

"I'm Lostfairy." Lost grinned. She then noticed Headmaster Clark back on stage and turned back around in her seat to listen to him.

"Thank you very much, Aparri." Headmaster Clark said. "Well, the bell is just about to ring so you better finish up your breakfast and head on up to your classroom!"

The cafeteria became abuzz with noise and chatter. Sarah looked up from her empty porridge bowl and looked around at table.

"Does anyone have the same homeroom as me?" Sarah asked.

"I do!" Ja said brightly.

"I KNOW you do, Ja. I was asking everyone else." Sarah said and stuck out her tongue at Ja.

"Well, who do you have as your homeroom teacher?" Karalee asked.

"Mr. Sigurd." Ja replied then snickered. "Heh, that's a funny word. Sigurd."

"I have Ms. Liza. And I know you have her too, Swirl," Lost smiled.

"Speaking of which, I'd like to get there earlier rather than later. I hate getting caught up in the rush after the bell rings," Swirl said.

"Good plan. Bye guys!" Lost said, standing up.

There was a chorus of goodbyes as Lost and Swirl walked toward their second homeroom of the year.

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?