Professor Voss closed the book in his hands and rested it gently on the desk.
"Before we continue, I would like to know the people I will be teaching this semester. Let's go around the room. State your name, where you come from, and the clan you hail from."
One after another, the students stood and introduced themselves. The classroom remained calm until it was Aria's turn.
She slowly rose from her seat.
"My name is Aria Fleur, and I hail from the Ardentis Clan."
A strange silence followed.
Then came the whispers.
"Ardentis?"
"She's from one of the lower clans?"
"What is she doing in M. Law & Governance?"
The murmurs spread softly across the classroom, accompanied by a few curious glances.
Aria remained standing, her expression unchanged as she looked around the room.
She had heard those whispers before.
She wasn't going to let them bother her now.
Selene was surprised by Aria's unwavering confidence. She, too, was shocked to hear that Aria was from a lower clan.
"My name is Selene Veyra, from the Morven Clan," Selene said.
The same whispers followed, but this time they were much louder.
After the introductions, the other students continued stating their names and clans. Aria soon noticed that she and Selene were the only students from the lower clans in their department.
It suddenly made sense why Selene had acted so awkwardly earlier.
It was also clearer to Aria why she had been so reluctant to socialize.
"Alright, students. You are all welcome to Elarion, and I would appreciate it if we all treated each other with enough respect," Professor Voss said before diving into the topic.
His lecture continued for several minutes as all the students maintained silence, although not everyone seemed able to ignore the presence of the two unfamiliar students in their midst.
He eventually asked a question, and Aria answered without hesitation or fear.
Her confidence earned her different impressions from the other students.
Throughout the one-hour lecture, Selene could already sense the potential of a good friendship in Aria. A part of her wanted to stay close to her.
When Professor Voss finally finished, the students began packing their learning materials.
It had been their only class of the day.
"You answered very well," Selene said, smiling at Aria, who was sitting a few seats away from her.
"Oh, thanks. It's just a normal habit," Aria replied as she stood up from her chair.
"Would you like to hang around for a quick lunch at the canteen?" Aria asked.
"Sure. I wouldn't want to miss it," Selene answered.
"Okay, let's go. I'm walking behind you," Aria added, clutching her bag.
Selene walked along the chairs toward the door, where she spotted some of her coursemates standing across the entrance with scornful looks on their faces.
There were three girls, and the fact that they were from superior clans seemed to linger around their unsettling behaviour. Neither Aria nor Selene knew exactly which clans they belonged to.
"BIRDS OF THE SAME FEATHER..." one of the girls with blonde hair whispered.
But it wasn't quiet enough.
The words went straight into Selene's ears.
The trio burst into sudden laughter as Selene walked past, feeling ashamed.
Aria, however, looked untouched by their words.
She suddenly stopped and turned to face them.
"Well, whatever you may put together, our clans clearly don't matter. Because, speaking of the two of us, you are a complete disgrace to the people you are here to represent."
The girls were shocked by Aria's attitude, as were some of the students around them.
The five girls could feel something stir in the air.
But Aria simply turned around and left, leaving the trio to sit in their silence.
The blonde girl narrowed her eyes.
Her name was Seraphina Vale.
Beside her stood Vivienne Raye, the girl with the neat bob, while Celine Arvora, whose hair was tied neatly behind her head, remained silent.
None of them liked what had just happened.
But they weren't going to forget it either.
***************
"Hey, Aria!"
Billy said, holding a food tray.
"Hey, Billy. How was your lecture?" Aria asked with a smile as she walked toward her in the crowded canteen.
Students sat on neatly arranged chairs, enjoying their meals while others moved around looking for empty seats.
Selene was walking beside Aria.
"Lecture went well. How about yours?" Billy asked, placing the tray on an empty table that could accommodate four people.
"Same," Aria replied.
"Please meet my new friend and coursemate, Selene," Aria said, introducing her as Billy waved at her with a friendly smile.
"And Selene, meet Billy. She's my close friend and also a member of my clan," Aria added.
"Nice meeting you, Billy," Selene said, taking her seat.
"Nice... huh! Nice meeting you too," Billy tried to say with food still in her mouth.
Aria laughed.
"Alright, Selene. Let's go get our portions."
"Yeah," Selene replied, following Aria toward the place where the food was served.
There was already a queue, and the two girls happily joined it.
The ambience of the place was lively. The queue moved slowly for several minutes before it was finally their turn.
When they reached the counter, Aria pointed at the portion she wanted.
Then she sensed something change around them.
The mischievous trio had arrived.
They stood nearby, smiling.
"Madam, it would be a waste of time to serve food to these nobodies," one of the girls said.
It was Vivienne Raye, her neat bob framing her face as she stared at Aria with disdain.
"Yes, ma. They are lowly creatures from the Ardentis and what's the other one again...?" Celine added, looking at Selene with a shameful expression.
"Morven," Seraphina supplied with a smirk.
After everyone heard those words, their eyes fell on Aria, while Selene stood behind her, visibly shaken.
Some students paused their meals and broke into laughter.
It was an embarrassing moment.
Students from different parts of the school began looking toward them, and whispers quickly spread through the canteen.
Aria's feelings couldn't be understood. It was an unexpected form of attack, and she could feel everyone's eyes on her.
Billy couldn't stand the amount of embarrassment any longer.
She walked toward Aria.
"Let's just leave these witches," Billy said, pulling Aria by the hand.
"Yes. It's better we leave," Selene added, lifting her head after having buried it in shame.
"Leaving and running isn't going to solve the problem," Aria said, looking straight into Billy's eyes.
She had other plans for them.