Well, the night before was a total fail. I was hoping to make some new acquaintances, and Samantha definitely wasn't one of them. At least not yet. I got up at nine o' clock to find Samantha yelling at her iPod for not working. "Please quit it Sam. It's too early for this..." I groaned. Then, Samantha just shot me a death stare. "Put a sock in it, first year. I don't take orders from minors." I was upset that the first person at the academy I made a rivalry with was my roommate. Not the best person to spar with. I decided she and I shouldn't have gotten off on the wrong foot, especially since we would be stuck with each other for the rest of the year. I've tried apologizing for my behavior the night before, but she just gave me the silent treatment, with an occasional "shut up" when I wasn't even talking. I threw on the fancy-looking but extremely uncomfortable school uniform and made my way over to the first class. I found my new teacher, Mr. Oak, telling the class to go into a single file line before heading off to the assembly room, for the headmaster had a speech to make. I noticed all the second years and above, including Samantha, rolling their eyes and sighing. I guessed his speeches were long and boring. We took our seats at the assembly room. Suddenly, a tall, dull-looking, middle-aged man made his way to the microphone and tapped it. The whole room was then silent, and all of the heads were turned toward the stage. "Hello, students. Welcome, first years. I am pretty sure that many of you right now know what I have to say. Some of you may have forgotten, others may have remembered, but either way, I must re-explain for the first years. Twinleaf Academy is not an ordinary school. Our academy's topic is the power within you, and your own unique potential. We will help you achieve what you are capable of, and that is mastering your powers." Suddenly, the room was filled with chit-chat and whispers from all of the first years, except for me. I was a relatively quiet girl. "Each and every single one of you has his or her own unique power and way of controlling it. Some of you may be telekinetic, others may be mind-readers. A lot of you, I'm sure, can talk to plants, and I know some people here have super speed. Others may be a tad more violent, being able to control the elements. Whether you use them for good or bad determines who you are. Thank you." Then, everyone was clapping, probably just kissing-up to the headmaster for pluses on their grades. I was eager to unlock my power, whatever it was. I was hoping I'd be a telekinetic, because I wouldn't have to carry all of my heavy books wherever I go. Suddenly, the lights went out, the chandeliers crashed to the floor, the windows broke, and the room was nearly pitch-black. None of us were hurt, thank goodness, and we all turned our attention to the large, shattered window. There was a tall, dark figure, and we couldn't make out what it was. The headmaster apparently knew who he was, and he wasn't happy. "Leave! NOW!" the headmaster shouted. The dark, shadowy figure didn't listen. He swooped down to our level, and snatched Samantha, which left everyone screaming. The headmaster suddenly boosted himself up with a blast of water from his hands and chased the dark figure. Like a canon, the headmaster blasted water at the figure, which caused him to gag and drop Samantha. "SAM!" I screamed dashing to where her falling shadow was. I caught her, nearly falling down. "You okay?" She didn't respond. She was in shock, and she had a few scratches here and there; I didn't catch her completely. The shadowy figure swooped down again with large, pointy claws aiming for Samantha once again. She was already hurt, and I couldn't let anything else happen to her. I went in front of her, and ended up with a claw scratch on my left arm. I clutched my arm, trying not to think about it, and looked back at the headmaster who was shooting nonstop beams of water at the figure, ordering him to leave. The figure finally flew away, vowing to return and retrieve what it was looking for. I was guessing Samantha had quite special powers. Everyone was quiet, and eventually we all returned to out dorms. Samantha looked at me with guilt in her eyes. "Courtney... thank you." She began to tear. "I'm sorry for being cold with you earlier, it's just I always underestimate first years and other weak-looking people, no offense, and they usually end up being.... some of my closest friends." She extended her arm. "Truce?' I smiled. "Truce." Then we shook hands. Suddenly, Samantha's jaw dropped open. "Sam?" I asked. "What is it? What's wrong?" Then she began to cry again. "That huge scratch on your arm," she sobbed, "I caused a lot of trouble today. I'm really sorry! I can't forgive myself!" I patted her back, reassuring her that it wasn't her fault. "It was that.... thing. It sounded like a man. About Headmaster's age..." I said. She nodded. "I agree. And it looked like the headmaster.... knew him?" I thought long and hard. "Yeah... I wonder what happened between them." Then I stopped. "We shouldn't think of such stressful things right before going to sleep. We have classes tomorrow. I suggest we turn in early." Sam said I could if I wanted to, but that she preferred to stay up later. "Fine by me." I said, pulling the covers on and turning off the light. "See you tomorrow." Then I yawned. "Good night." she said, walking to kitchen to prepare herself a small snack of cheese and crackers. I was so tired that I dparted from Earth and off to cloud nine the second my sleepy head hit the pillow.