I woke up in my room in Gija at the blazing sound of my alarm signaling that I should get ready for school. Gija is the Kingdom that my sister and her husband rule. In this world, it is divided into different kingdoms of different species. And Gija is one where the tamers like my sister live. I know that it’s kind of complicated how we have other races even though we are siblings. But that question came to be explained by simple biology.
In our ancestral tree, one of our relatives is a fairy, the late queen Diera. Apparently, Rose inherited the tamer’s blood while I inherited the blood of a fairy. It’s that simple.
I let out a yawn and began to drag myself off of my bed, and began to change into my school uniform. Then, I headed out into the massive dining area where Amy, Ace, Arcielia, and Klaus sat. The majority of the reinforcement of the dining area, like the corridor, was supported and strengthened by trees along the concrete walls. However, the flowers that bloom from them appear brighter and emit a pleasant perfume.
“Aunty Stella!” Arcielia, their eldest daughter, waved me over to sit beside her. I smiled at the little elf girl before taking my seat. “Can you show me your magic? Can you freeze my milk?” Her eyes sparkled when she offered me her glass of warm milk.
“Arcie, don’t disturb your aunt. She needs and no magic while we’re eating.” My sister told her softly as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her daughter’s elongated ear.
When Arcie pouted at her mother, it was Ace’s turn. He was spoon-feeding his son when he talked. “Listen to your mother, Arcie. Remember that being an elf requires discipline.”
Arcie finally submitted and slumped in her chair. “I just wanted to see her magic. Maybe it will inspire mine to manifest already.”
I looked at Ace and Rose as soon as she said it. They were exchanging worried glances as well. Arcie is an elf with two royal blood. Naturally, an elf like King Ace has gifts passed down to them from their previous generations. Ace received the gift of the forest, which apparently is the most powerful one of all the other gifts.
To a royal elf, the gift should have manifested at the age of five, but Arcie is already seven. She’s late by two years already. I guess her tamer blood was hindering her elf blood for her to inherit anything. And I think Rose and Ace were too hesitant to tell her about it.
“Arcie, would you like to show your mother your bow skills later?” Ace immediately changes the topic.
“I would love to!” Rose added. “Your father told me that you’re very skilled. You might even be better than him.” She beamed. At that comment, Ace glared at my sister but chose to say nothing because of their daughter.
The little elf Princess seemed to forget about the gift topic and began to seem excited all of a sudden. She focused her attention on her mother and began telling her the things she learned while training with her father.
I listened to them as I continued to eat. Maybe I should tell Rose to explain things to Arcie regarding her gift before she finds out too late. I think that she’s old enough to understand. After all, it is better to know the truth sooner rather than later.
As soon as I finished my meal, I headed back to my room to collect my things. I got the golden key from my neck that helps me travel from this dimension and to the other. King Frederick, a friend of my sister and Ace and also king of the warlocks and witches, had this made specifically for me. Whenever I would lose it, it would always return to my neck so I could return safely. All I have to do is to insert it in any door with a lock, and it will immediately open the portal for me to the place in the opposite realm that I wish to go.
It’s pretty convenient that I could just portal myself straight into my classroom, but that would be too risky. Instead, I always portal myself to the door of Jen’s apartment, Rose’s best friend. She doesn’t mind it, though, because I would always portal myself out of her apartment door.
I always take a walk when I go to school because it is just a few blocks from Jen’s apartment. Plus, it’s good to give me some exposure so I would have a little time to absorb which realm I was in at the moment.
I arrived at Waynard High thirty minutes before classes starts. I was just about to enter the building when something caught the corner of my eyes - something small and black.
It stopped at one of the school benches and sat as it stared at me with those yellow feline eyes. Something within me snapped in a pleasant manner like I knew that cat from somewhere.
The cat let out a soft sound before turning its back to me and heading for the corner of the building. “Hey, wait!” I had no idea what compelled me to follow the cat, but before I was even aware of it, my legs began to move by themselves and chased after it towards the back of the building.
“There you are, Iva.” I gasped when I heard a familiar voice. My knees almost buckled as I hastened my pace to see if my hunches were right. It couldn’t be, could it?!
“Kellar!?” I called in hope, but as soon as I emerged from the corner, my hope died when I saw that my suspicion was wrong. Instead of the black hair and red jeweled eyes I expected, I was greeted with the student council president’s blonde hair and blue eyes.
But that did not stop Leo from turning around as soon as he heard my voice. “Miss Stella?” He looked surprised to see me but never failed to smile immediately as he would to other students. “Good Morning.” He greeted me.
I placed my hands on the wall beside me to steady myself as I fixed my composure. “G-Good morning,” I said waved at him awkwardly.
Leo nodded in delight at my greeting and carefully returned the gesture. “Were you expecting someone?”
I waved my hands in front of me in denial at the question. “N-No, I wasn’t. Sorry, I just mistook you for someone else.” I said in embarrassment when I noticed something in the president’s arms. It was the same cat that I was following earlier. “Is that...is the cat yours?” I asked.
Leo’s attention seemed to shift onto the cat in his arms. It was purring affectionately and rubbing its head on his chest. He lets out a laugh. “No, actually. She’s just a stray who seemed to have grown attached to me.” The cat lifted its gaze and let out a soft sound in my direction. “Looks like she finds you intriguing,” Leo commented with a chuckle before lifting his head to address me. “Do you want to pet her?”
I wanted to say no, but staring at the cat's eyes made me feel as if my legs were being drawn to it unconsciously. Before I knew it, I was by Leo's side, caressing the cat's chin. When my fingers touched its cheek, it rubbed its head on my hand. I smiled at the gesture. “Iva.” I repeated the name that I heard him call out earlier. “Is that her name? It’s pretty.” I asked him.
“Sort of, yeah.” He shrugged bashfully and scratched the side of his cheek. “The name just somehow came to me. It feels right, but I don’t think that’s really the name that she wants to be called.”
I straightened up so I would be able to look at him. “It seems to me that you should adopt her,” I suggested with a smile.
Leo blinked in surprise as if the thought had never occurred to him. “No. I don’t think that I should. She’s a free cat, and I don’t think that she’ll like being stuck with me for the rest of her life.”
“You giving her a name makes you pretty attached to her already. And seeing as how she behaves with you even though she’s a stray, I think it is a mutual feeling.” I pointed out.
Leo still seemed hesitant as he stared at the Iva in his arms. “I want to.” He finally said after a long pause. He looked like he was about to say something more when the school bell cut him off.
“First bell.” He said and lowered himself to place Iva to the ground. Afterward, he turned to me with a friendly smile. “I’ll be heading off first to talk to my peers. See you in class, miss Stan.” Something about his demeanor almost made me forget that I was in the modern world. For a brief moment, I thought that I was talking to a nobleman with how he carried himself.
“R-Right. See you.” It was all I could muster after recovering from my previous dilemma. I have to pull myself together and not mistake one world from the other.
As soon as Leo was gone, I turned back to Iva, who was now staring at me. Shivers went down my spine when I saw the cat seemed to smirk at me smirk heading back to the garden.
The gesture was so bizarre, but since I am a resident of Gija, animals showing intelligent expressions aren’t new.
But I have to wonder and ask myself again, do animals in the modern world do the same?