Class dismissed us, but the tension didn't budge. Apparently, it missed the memo.
I stood slowly, trying not to make any sudden movements that might ignite my internal mana out of sheer anxiety. Mariette already had her notebook tucked under one arm, the other hand on her hip as she glanced at me.
"Lady Celia, I have an announcement to tell you," Mariette said with the smooth delivery of someone about to ruin my entire year.
I blinked. "What is it, Mariette?"
"Ms. Valeria and Count Hadrian have agreed to welcome Ms. Seraphina Noir inside the Averna estate," she said, calm as a lake before a thunderstorm. "And she will be staying in your room for five years, together with you, until you both are old enough to enroll at the Magic Academy."
I blinked. "Wait, wait, wait—what do you mean Seraphina will be staying with us?"
Mariette replied with a calm demeanor, "It's exactly what I said."
"And she'll be sleeping in my room for five whole years?!"
"Yes. Count Hadrian already made up his mind before he left the mansion, because the king summoned him."
My soul left my body, hovered three feet above me, took one look at my life choices.
I stared blankly at the nearest wall like it had answers.
Five years.
Five. Years.
Why is this happening to me?
Is God playing with me?
Did I offend a deity in a past life? Did I accidentally step on fate's favorite flower?
Mariette remained mercilessly calm beside me, flipping through her notebook like this wasn't the beginning of my slow descent into madness.
I most definitely did not remember agreeing to this.
Mariette, still perfectly composed, added, "That's because no one informed you."
I turned toward her slowly. "So everyone knew? Except me?"
"Yes," she said without hesitation. "Ms. Valeria specifically told us not to tell you until after your lessons."
I blinked again. My brain struggled to catch up.
"So I've been walking around all day like an idiot while everyone else knew I was about to get magically roommate-jumped for five years?!"
Mariette gave me a sympathetic shrug.
I dropped my face into my hands and groaned, "I'm going to need a divine reset button."
Seraphina was already by the exit, waiting for me, her expression unreadable—like a marble statue sculpted by someone with a grudge.
Mariette and I slowly approached her, me dragging my feet like I was heading toward my own execution.
Mariette cleared her throat and asked, trying to sound casual but failing, "Um… Ms. Seraphina, did you already know about the living arrangements?"
Seraphina didn't even blink. "Yes."
Just like that. No hesitation. No drama. Just yes.
My mouth opened, then closed, then opened again, searching for a response that wouldn't get me smote on the spot.
Mariette, ever the embodiment of composure, nodded like this was the most natural thing in the world. "We should head back to the estate. Would you prefer to settle into the room first, or take a short tour?"
I glanced at Seraphina.
She looked at me.
I looked at Mariette.
Mariette looked dangerously amused.
And I—well, I looked like someone who'd just been handed a five-year sentence of socially-induced cardiac arrest.
We walked through the estate's halls in a grim little parade: Mariette leading the way with professional enthusiasm, me trailing behind her like a ghost who just learned she's haunting her own future, and Seraphina following in complete silence like a very elegant, very ominous shadow.
We reached the door to my bedroom—our bedroom now, apparently—and Mariette paused to gesture grandly.
"And here we are. Your shared quarters."
She opened the door with a flourish, like she was unveiling a grand prize.
The room looked just as I left it this morning: neat, bright, and blissfully mine. My bookshelves were arranged in perfect alphabetical order, my bed was made with terrifying precision, and my desk still had the little enchanted inkpot that occasionally burped sparks when it was annoyed.
Everything screamed Celia Averna's personal sanctuary.
And then Seraphina stepped inside like she was inspecting enemy territory.
She glanced at the bookshelves, the curtains, the beds—two beds now, I noticed in horror—and then, with all the emotion of someone analyzing grain quality, she said, "It's adequate."
Adequate? I nearly fell to my knees. This room has a heated floor tile system! That chair in the corner is made from imported soft-tail wyvern hide! I vacuumed with a wand for this!
I forced a smile that probably looked more like a grimace. "Glad you approve."
Seraphina stepped over to the bookshelves and tilted her head slightly. "Are any of these cursed?"
I blinked. "No?! Why would they be cursed?!"
She shrugged. "You never know with nobles."
Mariette coughed lightly into her hand to hide a laugh. I gave her a withering look. Traitor.
Then Seraphina walked over to her newly-installed bed—situated alarmingly close to mine—and sat on the edge like she was testing the structural integrity of a throne.
"It'll do," she murmured.
I stared at the space between our beds. It was… not enough.
Definitely not enough emotional distance.
"I'll… just go scream into a pillow for a bit," I muttered, inching toward my desk.
Mariette, still smiling, pulled out her notebook again. "If either of you would like to personalize your side of the room, I've brought materials. Extra storage boxes, enchantment stones, maybe even a—"
"Soundproof barrier?" I interrupted hopefully.
She actually considered it.
"I'll ask Ms. Valeria."
I sighed and flopped face-first onto my bed, already mourning the version of my life where I got to sleep alone, journal in peace, and not share oxygen with a walking enigma.
Seraphina, meanwhile, was already organizing her things with military efficiency.
And thus began Day One of Roommate: Nightmare Edition.
"Well then," Mariette said, with a pleasant tone that absolutely did not match the panic rising in my chest, "I shall take my leave and allow you both some privacy to settle in."
No. No, no, no, don't leave me here—
"If either of you need anything," she continued, utterly ignoring my silent pleas, "please don't hesitate to ring the bell. I've already instructed the staff to bring up a tray of hot tea. Chamomile, of course. Very soothing for… transitions."
I was transitioning into madness.
"Sleep well, Lady Celia. Lady Seraphina. May your first night together be a peaceful one."
Peaceful? I screamed internally. She's a ten-year-old military ghost with a sword collection and trust issues! I sleep with a stuffed bear and unresolved magical trauma!
But Mariette was already gone.
The door clicked shut behind her with all the finality of a dungeon lock sealing someone's fate.
I stood in stunned silence, staring at the spot where my last line of defense had just abandoned me.
Betrayal.
Absolute betrayal.
Seraphina, unbothered as ever, simply turned back to her half of the room and resumed unpacking, as if she hadn't just completely redefined my living conditions for the next five years.
I took a step back toward the door.
It didn't open.
Traitor door.
I was alone.
Alone… with her.
My new roommate.
My new eternal shadow.
My new reminder that personal space was now a luxury of the past.
I stood there, staring at the room I used to call mine—now thoroughly contaminated by the looming presence of a second wardrobe… and only one bed.
Just one.
Why is there only one bed?!
My soul screamed internally.
There was supposed to be two. Two beds. Two clearly divided sleeping zones. Two islands of personal space in the sea of unwanted proximity. But no—apparently fate decided we were close enough for sleepovers.
With her.
Before I could even begin formulating a protest, Seraphina walked over to the bed—our bed, apparently—sat down with practiced ease, and lay back like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Like she hadn't just committed a war crime against basic roommate etiquette.
Within seconds, her eyes were closed. Her breathing evened out. She was asleep.
Asleep. Just like that.
Meanwhile, I climbed into the very same bed with all the grace of someone preparing for a magical execution. I lay stiffly on my side, staring at the ceiling like it might offer escape instructions.
Sleep? Ha. Sleep had packed its bags and run for the hills the moment I saw there was only one bed.
I could feel the heat radiating from Seraphina's side. Not a lot, just enough to make me hyperaware that she was there. Breathing. Unmoving. Mysteriously peaceful, like a vampire pretending to be harmless before the bite.
I turned over.
Then back.
Then over again.
Why was she asleep already?! Was this girl born with an off-switch?!
I let out a tiny groan and flopped onto my back.
This was going to be a very long five years.