Lost and Found

A soft sigh escaped Aisling's lips as she stared up at the stone walls of Elmwood Academy, her eyes studying the intricate entrance. She tightened her grip on the suitcase she held in front of herself like it could shield her from whatever she was worried about past those doors. "I must be fucking crazy..." she murmured to herself.

She could back out. She knew she could turn tail and dart out of this place and no one would know. It's not like she was required to enter the school, even with the scholarship gifting her a full ride here. And then there was all the time she'd spent traveling here by plane, train, and automobile, but she could just leave. Take the same route back to that crappy home and crappy school. At least she knew what to expect there. Of course, that was if she even had a home left. Group homes filled fast, and she'd given up her spot when she'd left with everything she owned in the suitcase she clutched like her life depended on it, and the bag over her shoulder. "Come on, quit being a little bitch," she quietly chastised herself.

Her inner argument was interrupted by a feminine voice calling out to her, causing her to look around for the source. Another shout had her looking up to see a girl with curly, brown hair leaning over the window sill of a large window on the second floor.

"Oi, ya just planning to stand about like some weird arse statue?" she called down with an impish grin. "Or ya going to come inside?"

Shaking her head at the curly-haired girl, she returned the grin with her own tentative smile. "Umm... no, but if you could point me to the wizard, that'd be great. I need to ask him for a bit of courage and where he's hidden Toto and the scarecrow," she replied, her grip on the suitcase loosening as she settled into her usual smartass mode when nervous.

"Ha! Well, we do have some brainless gits here, and some I'd call heartless arseholes that could stand in as the scarecrow and tin man. As for Toto, well, there are enough males around here who would hump your leg, if you're into that kind of thing," she called back, chuckling, "Ya got a name to go with that wit, or am I just calling you Dorothy?"

Aisling took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as she glanced around at her surroundings. She could shrug and decide this place wasn't worth the effort of even introducing herself. However, as she stared up at the friendly face of the girl staring at her, she decided to give this place a shot. Setting the suitcase down at her feet, she smiled. "Oh, definitely not a Dorothy," she stated, chewing on her lower lip for a moment. "My name is Aisling. How about you? I'm hoping your parents didn't saddle you with the name Glenda, did they?"

The girl gave her a look of outrage before grinning. "Nope, no Glenda here. My name is Kenzie. So, where are you from Aisling? With a name like that I'd say... Ireland, especially with that hair. But, you sound like a bloody Yank."

"Yank? You say that like it's a bad thing. Yes, I'm from the US. Anyway, you just hang out here to yell at random people that pass by or ...?" she inquired.

"Nope, welcoming committee for the bloody Yank," Kenzie teased as she grinned and straightened. "Come inside and I'll help you get settled in."

"Well, Oz, here we come," Aisling muttered, adjusting the bag strap on her shoulder before picking up her suitcase. She took hesitant steps towards the door, pushing it open to step inside the large lobby. Blinking to adjust to the dim lighting, she looked around at the large space.

The lobby alone was waaay bigger than here room back at the group home. Sculptures and artwork took up much of the edges of the room, with the rest taken up by a large stairwell that split in two directions part way up.

"Just what am I doing here?" she muttered as she slowly turned around, facing the stairs at the sound of footsteps.

"You get used to the place. It's just like any other school after you've been here long enough.." Kenzie said as she walked down to join her. "I'll show you to your room, and don't worry about the rest of your stuff. When it gets here, the staff will make sure it gets to the right room."

"Umm... okay," she muttered, feeling suddenly self-consciously. Now, she really was wondering how in the world she won a scholarship to this place. Her knuckles whitened as she gripped her suitcase tighter, almost afraid that her few belongings would suddenly disappear.

She followed Kenzie up the stairs to the left, idly listening as Kenzie talked about the place. The place was huge and she knew she would get lost multiple times, so she tried to memorize what she could but it all felt so overwhelming.

Eventually coming to a stop in front of a door, Kenzie pulled out a key and unlocked the doorknob before pushing the door open. "This is your room," she said, holding the key out to her.

Taking the key, she stepped inside and took a look around the interior. She was surprised when she saw only one bed. "Wait.. I've got my own room?" she asked, glancing back at Kenzie.

"Ummm, well yeah. Everyone here gets their own room, and our own bathroom. You've got the usual- bed, desk, wardrobe. You can decorate as you like. My room is three doors down if you've ever got questions," Kenzie said, her brow arching as she watched Aisling's reaction.

"Oh, okay," she muttered, setting her suitcase down. She walked over to the bed, running her hands over it.

"Sooo, yeah.. I'm going to let you settle in. I think the dean will send someone for you in about an hour to do the usual new-student spiel. Anyway, welcome to Elmwood," Kenzie said, giving her a big smile.

Aisling looked back at Kenzie. She'd missed most of what she said, too distracted by the idea of having her own room, but she didn't want to make Kenzie think she'd been ignoring her. She nodded slowly, smiling in return. "Okay," she said.

Once Kenzie walked out, she turned back to the bed. She resisted the urge to let out a squeal of happiness. Her own room! She hadn't had her own room in forever! And her own bathroom? She began to explore the room, checking out everything.

She was surprised to see a new tablet and a phone on the desk. "Just what kind of place is this?" she asked, picking up the phone to study before setting it down. She turned back to her suitcase, beginning to unpack.