Travellers Trinkets

Beyond sharp fenced gates stood a five story mansion that served as the main dorm for the study body of Rosurnan Academy. The mansion looked three times as large as the last time I saw it. It was a square E shaped building without the middle stick turning it more into a C. Behind the mansion were two other shorter dorms that littered the campus. However the presence of other buildings did little to calm my mind. My drawstring backpack gripped to me, my meager belongings barely filling it to the brim, its weight doubling with every second. Despite the hand I held onto I couldn't muster the strength to move my legs forward. If I was here alone maybe I'd just keep standing here, thankfully I'm not.

“Just take a deep breath. Everything will be alright.” Diantha's words calmed me as I followed her instruction with a long exhale.

Looking up at Diantha's smile with my own she took that as a signal to keep walking forward so I did the same. The short steps up to the door felt enormous as I trudged through them, the only thing keeping me from running away was the firm grip Diantha had on me. As we entered the scent of fancy manors and polished wood wanted into me. Diantha was unfazed but the sudden influx caused me to sneeze causing her to let out an involuntary giggle. The sneeze alerted the receptionist just a few feet ahead of us and the students in the common room. 

The common room to the left of the receptionist looked like any hotel lobby except much larger, able to store maybe fifty students at once. It was filled to the brim at the moment with students who were probably waiting for orientation to begin. Just thinking about it made me shiver, it would mean the start of the semester and the beginning of school again. I never finished highschool but going back into education never seemed more daunting than now.

Putting aside my nervousness Diantha and I approached the receptionist. She was of a stocky build and with the appearance of a tired old librarian without the glasses. She sat behind a built-in desk with one of those vertical slabs on a hinge that I always felt nervous walking around due to those usually being employees only. The chair seemed like the most uncomfortable thing in the world and the desk was slightly too short to ever be used without adjusting yourself.

“Are you here to register your daughter's dorm?” The nonchalance of the implication made me sputter, Diantha had a similar reaction to the unexpected accusation of familiarity.

“I- I'm just a faculty member helping her.” Diantha immediately put social distance between the two of us, it stung for some reason to think of her as a mere chaperone. It was the first time I'd seen her so flustered.

“Name?” The clerk was curt having probably done this a dozen or more times already considering today was the opening ceremony and orientation.

I looked up at Diantha expecting her to speak to the woman on my behalf, as if she was actually my mother. However she stood silent before eventually staring down at me with an expression that told me to introduce myself.

“Mikayla.” I spoke my name as confidently as I could accidentally putting a bit too much force into it causing my voice to echo in the empty room.

Unfazed, the receptionist began rifling through a massive book likely filled with other students and their dorm rooms. After a minute or so she stopped on a page and traced it with her finger until she found my name.

“Floor five, room seventeen.” The lady said with the most boredom I'd ever heard mustered in my life as she slid a single key engraved with both my name and my room.

With a practiced smile Diantha took the key from the lady. “Thank you.”

Taking my hand Diantha led the two of us up through four flights of stairs until we reached the uppermost floor of the mansion. There was a long hallway filled with windows bringing light in and two dozen doors to dorm rooms. It was so strange to be in a building so tall in a world like Ennath. Staring outside I watched miniature people go about their day passing through the cobblestone streets with certainty. With how short the other buildings were I could even see outside of Rosurnan and even the giant waterfall whose sound permeated throughout all of Rosurnan. It was a mesmerizing sight only broken by Diantha's voice piercing through my awe.

“Beautiful isn't it?” Diantha asked with a pleasant tone.

“I wish I could have a sight like this everyday.” I said with sourness in my voice.

“Well you do live here now.” Diantha stated as she continued down the hallway towards my room.

“I guess I do…” I muttered to myself as I caught up to Diantha.

I followed close behind realizing that I actually did live here now, and at the top floor of all places. How lucky was it that I got a room up here? I'm sure some rich kids’ parents overpaid just so their kid could have a better view than someone else. Walking through the halls with Diantha I realized how extravagant this area really was, the wood had those square patterns engraved within them that garages back home did. There were expensive looking paintings and even fine sofas littered across the place with students loitering within them. Sofas, not even couches, actual medieval sofas. This wasn't just a hallway, it was basically a second common room within the hallways of the fifth floor.

However as we walked through the hallway a nagging feeling came to my mind. Counting the rooms I realized that my room number was suspiciously centered compared to the other rooms. My suspicions were proven right when Diantha and I stopped right in the middle of the mansion where the middlemost room stood. This couldn't be right, my room couldn't possibly have double doors leading up to it, or have a gap wide enough from the other doors to be an entire apartment. 

The other students noticed it too, eyeing me as if I was their rival. Most of them glared at me with disdain, mostly at my clothes but also at my Steilae parts. I doubted most of them had actually seen a Steilae before since I'd never met one other than myself. One of them was looking really hard, she had platinum blonde hair and a snow fox resting on her shoulders, her smile kind of creeped me out. She was unusually young to be in a school like this being maybe thirteen or fourteen but a little older than my perceived age. I wondered who she was to get into the academy. Either she was like Scarlet who earned her place here or they were like me and got lucky that someone else wanted me to be here.

“Are you sure this is the right room, Diantha?” I asked with caution knowing whoever owned this room was rich enough to have me expelled and the looks were discouraging.

“Trust me Mikayla. I'm sure the administration gave you the correct room.” Diantha spoke with so much confidence that I had to be sure she was right after all she helped me get into this academy in the first place.

Diantha unlocked the double door revealing a living room the size of a studio apartment as we stepped inside. On the opposite side of the room to us was a wall painted a yellowish birch white with another set of windowed doors leading towards a balcony. There were couches within and a dining table fit for at least six people. The floor was made of a light colored oak that contrasted the colors of the walls. I half expected there to somehow be a TV in here but the lack of one's presence didn't surprise me. What did surprise me were the two doors, one which had a sign spelling out my name in Selukan and another that I couldn't figure out with my limited literacy.

“I guess it is my room.” I muttered as I walked towards the door with my name on it.

Diantha walked behind letting me experience the room for myself. I shuffled through the dense light grey carpet below me as I approached my door. Peering towards the other door I wondered who could be my roommate. Maybe the rooms were randomly assigned but I had a gut feeling there was more to the situation than just mere luck. I wanted to ask Diantha about it but that felt like stepping on her foot. If she had somehow gotten me this room I didn't want to make her feel bad by giving it to somebody like me.

Instead of confronting Diantha I decided to put my hand on the door handle next to the sign hanging on the door, Mikayla engraved within wood. Turning the door I was greeted with something far plainer than I had expected. To my left stood a wooden bed painted white with white sheets and a pillow with a few things on it. On the bed was a plush doll, a plush of a tan skinned little girl with black hair and green eyes with a spiked felt tail. Below the plushie was a letter and uniform I already knew was mine. Embedded into the wall was a small closet a meter or so in width. To my right was a window letting bright light shine onto a wooden desk and chair. If I saw this on Silt I'd think it was a little girl's room.

For a while I just stood there taking it in before Diantha spoke up with excitement. “Don't you want to try on your uniform?”

In truth I was a little scared of putting on the academy's uniform. They were gendered and I had hoped somehow that they would have given me a male uniform but I knew this was inevitable. It wasn't that it was a girl's uniform, it was that I'm a man, and even if I had a girl's name that didn't mean I was a girl. All it meant was that I didn't care what others thought of me, that I was better than them. Even that train of thought felt like a hollow lie.

“Can you leave the room just for a bit? I'm going to put on the uniform.” I requested of Diantha hoping for some privacy for the next few moments as I removed my backpack and placed it onto the carpet below.

“Of course, call for me when you're done.” Diantha said in a chipper tone as she exited the room and closed the door.

With a sigh I approached the mound of femininity with trepidation wondering how I would feel after adorning it. However as I approached the bed I couldn't help but wonder what the letter contained. It wasn't like they just gave every student their very own private room and free plushie on enrollment. Tearing the wax rose seal off I gently removed the letter from its casing and began to read it. Most words were illegible with my limited reading skills but I got the gist of the important stuff.

Welcome Mikayla… There was a bunch of text that seemed like a formal greeting but I was able to barely recognize my own name. 

As the… The word was something important, maybe the headmaster? 

of Rosurnan I am pleased to welcome you into our city… Was the writer talking about me being a wayfarer? 

You are a very special student that has caught the attention of your teachers… It went on for a while with more formalities but it seemed genuine from what I could tell.

Your guardian helped make a present for you. The doll's name is Maisie, Diantha made her for you. We hope you take care of her. This part was mostly eligible without much need for inferencing.

From … Amaryllis and Diantha. That word again that I just couldn't make out frustrated me. 

P.S. Please take care of my daughter and keep my name hidden from the students. I hope the two of you become good friends in your time together. I guess whoever this Amaryllis was she was the mother of my roommate. Though I did look twice at me needing to keep her name away from the students, it didn't seem like a hassle but it was strange.

I gave a forlorn look to the plushified version of myself on the bed. I'd never had a plushie or a doll before, my parents never would have let me but for some reason I always wanted one. For some reason Diantha had spent the time making me a plushie, that wasn't something anybody else I could think of would do. She actually cared about me, or rather she cared about Mikayla, I still hadn't told her who I really was. That this body, this identity, was nothing but a lie, that Mikayla didn't really exist. I could tell her the truth but I just know that she'd hate me for lying to her for so long.

Instead of confessing I eyed the uniform, a distinctly feminine thing sporting a skirt and blazer with gold colored buttons. Picking it up and comparing it to the commoner rags I wore was like night and day. These hand me downs itched in some places constantly but the uniform felt crisp and neat. Actual clothing was right in front of me and I couldn't help but want to finally be able to get rid of these rags. Of course I wanted to wear real clothes, all I was doing was changing clothes after all. At least that's what I told myself as I began to slip on the outfit.

First was the plaid white and grey skirt, it was easy to slip on and surprisingly had built in shorts to halt any perverts alongside with a custom made tail hole. Next was a… a bra I hadn't noticed until just now. Sure I was physically a girl but I didn't have much of a bust at all and I hadn't needed to wear anything like that ever since I got here. But the damn thing felt so soft and nice to touch, it couldn't hurt to put it on right? After all, if it was comfortable then why not keep wearing it even if I didn't need to? Slipping on the bra I was immediately vindicated in my assumption as the cool soft fabric felt strangely nice despite not having anything to hold up. 

The white button up shirt and blazer quickly came on right after and I was done putting on my new garments. In its entirety the gold, grey, and white color scheme of the uniform didn't look the greatest in contrast to my green highlights and tail. There was a gold and white tie I didn't bother trying to put on since I had no idea how to do a tie. 

“Diantha you can come in now.” I said towards the plain door.

 However as I called Diantha to enter the room my eye caught something in the corner of the closet. A mirror stood there leaning against the wall, unassuming yet hidden enough to reveal my entire visage to myself. The girl in the mirror looked like she was about to be sent off on her first day towards some preppy private school. Which I guess I was, it was just that this school was more like a college or university than any school I'd ever gone to. Her unkempt hair didn't fit her uniform, in fact she looked like a wild animal stuffed into a school uniform.

“You forgot to put on your tie.” I jumped as Diantha stood next to me holding the gold striped tie within her hands. I hadn't noticed her while looking into my reflection.

“Don't sneak up on me Diantha.” I said with the little frustration I could muster at the woman.

“Sorry Mikayla. But your uniform doesn't look finished without the tie. You should put it on.” Diantha held out the tie to me with expectation in her voice.

“I don't know how to put on a tie.” I said plainly to Diantha hoping she would drop it, I never liked how ties clung at my throat anyways, they always brought back bad memories.

“Then watch closely.” Diantha didn't elaborate as she gently brought the tie to my throat.

Diantha's tender hands began making motions I couldn't keep up with as I felt the tie being wrapped around me. In just a few seconds the necktie had been neatly formed around my neck. The girl in the mirror and the maternal figure behind her looked like a pair of people who belonged together. I shook the thought away, I didn't need any thoughts like that hurting my friendship with Diantha.

“Did you see how I did it?” Diantha asked but my throat felt too stiff to speak so I shook my head instead.

Diantha slowly unraveled the necktie before redoing it showing me the step by step process on how to untie and retie it. 

“Now you try.” Diantha said encouragingly to me like I was the child she saw me as but I didn't mind.

My first attempt at making the tie was slow and sloppy. Sloppy knots formed as I wrapped chunks of the tie into an unseemly mass with only a small bit of the actual tie seeping through. The second attempt went just as poorly with the unseemly tie looking more like a bowtie than a necktie. By the third Diantha had taken things into her own hands, literally. Her hands guided mine until a perfectly formed necktie finally appeared.

After brushing my hair aside and fixing it Diantha spoke up again. “Don't you look pretty?”

Seeing the girl and the lady behind her in the mirror caused my heart to ache more than it had ever had in my entire life. The lady was smiling and the girl smiled too, a falsely earned happiness.

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