Oddball Out

“No, I humbly apologize. I was simply overcome with exhaustion from last night,” Crystal said, feeling sorry for the poor soul in front of her. As she looked closer, she noticed droplets of water sliding off her roommate's turquoise-green hair and clothes, but as they reached the ground, they simply vanished into thin air. Crystal realized that she couldn't even feel the water on her own face even after she felt like water was splashed on her face, as it kept evaporating instantaneously.

“Were you observing me closely?” Crystal wanted to inquire if the fae had been hovering over her, but hesitated, thinking it might come across as rude, especially after her initial reaction of appearing like a mad women. She imagined that the fae in front of her might have almost mistaken her for a demon.

"I beg your pardon, but I was merely curious,” the fae replied, as if realizing herself that her behavior was strange. Crystal breathed a sigh of relief; just imagining that thing being normal to the faeries was horrible. She needed her personal space no matter what.

"I must express my regrets for having startled you. Prior to our encounter, I had not had the opportunity to interact with anyone from the Earthly Realm." the fae said, looking at Crystal with hopeful eyes. Crystal nodded her head, relieved to see the fear dissipating from the fae's face.

“It's alright. My name is Crystal Smith, and I am actually unaware of what type of fae I am. So that’s it about me since you already know I’m from the Earth.” Crystal said, extending her hand in greeting.

The roommate who until now looked like a scared bunny finally smiled widely and intermixed the fingers of both her hands, reaching them to her forehead twice and Crystal wondered if that was how the greetings worked at the academy.

“"I am Marina Abelone, a faerie of the ocean. While I am aware of my abilities, I must confess that I have not yet acquired the necessary expertise to exercise complete control over them." Marina nervously chuckled, looking all around herself because of the water dripping out, and Crystal followed her to make the situation less awkward.

“No worries, I'm no exception, or you could say I'm going to be the worst among our peers because I have no knowledge of what I am,” Crystal joked, hoping to ease Marina's tension. Marina looked at her with a confused expression, and Crystal wondered if she had already made a fool of herself.

“Although I don’t know about my powers, I’m pretty sure I’m a fae--” Crystal began to explain, but was interrupted by Marina.

"I beg your pardon, but I couldn't help but wonder how you articulate your words so distinctly, yet I am still able to comprehend your language. I am certain that we are both speaking the same language, however, I notice that there appears to be an uncommon conciseness between your words." Marina said, studying Crystal with a curious expression.

Crystal was only now realizing that from Custos to Marina, whoever she had met from Plutus would speak in proper language, not skipping or shortening words or using slang, like that in an ancient series you could see on TV.

“Oh, will it cause trouble?” Crystal asked, concerned that her way of speaking might offend someone, especially the professors because you could never know which one of those could make your school life a literal hell.

“No, as long as your tone is adjusted, there is none who shall be offended,” Marina assured her, putting her mind at ease. Crystal felt grateful to have a roommate who seemed to be a kind and understanding personality.

“Thank goodness,” Crystal said with a sigh of relief escaping her lips.


"Please do not hesitate to inquire anything of me. It would be my pleasure to render any assistance to the fullest extent of my capability," Marina said, looking at Crystal with a warm and welcoming expression.

Crystal looked back at her with heartfelt eyes, feeling grateful once again. Things had been going in the right direction for her, and she thought that maybe it wouldn't be as challenging as she had originally supposed to survive in the academy's environment.

...

Crystal felt as if she had jumped to conclusions too quickly, as she now stood in the West Garden for the introduction of the academy's faculty and the sharing of basic rules among all the other freshers. She realized how different she felt from the others, like an oddball out.

And if her own insecurity of being weirdly different was not enough, some demons who were standing in line right beside her were eyeing her creepily.

“I did not realize that faeries possessed the ability to exhibit such a degree of absurdity with their ostentatious display. Considering they were already in a woeful state, this spectacle is certain to be the source of entertainment for the entire year," said a demon whose skin was even redder than the setting sun. He had black stabbing horns that stretched almost six inches, and his eyes glowed yellow with serpent-like black pupils.

Crystal wanted to punch him right in the face along with his minions who snickered at his lame jokes. What made Crystal furious was that none of the faeries even paid attention to his words, as if she deserved it for putting their kind down in front of others.

She thought maybe it was her jet-black hair, her normal skin tone, or her human clothes that were weirding out the other faeries.

"I would advise you to disregard his remarks. It is a well-known trait among demons to incessantly chatter about everything, regardless of its significance. In fact, they are often unkind to their own kind. It is best to overlook their comments as they are unlikely to heed or reform their behavior," said Marina, Crystal's roommate, who stood in front of her and then turned back around, focusing her attention to the front once again.

Crystal pondered over her roommate’s words and glanced at the demon who had just spoken foul about her. She smiled broadly, turning it into a smirk and then turned her head to the front just like Marina, ignoring the brat who was now speechless.

Not only did she show that she did not care about what he thought of her, but she also demonstrated that even as a fresher and an oddball out, she knew his words were not worth her time.

Even his own minions now snickered at him, making him furious as he glared at her deadly without blinking.

The West Garden had a big pond on its left where the merfolk were, both students and faculty, clearly separated. Crystal suddenly remembered Tweety’s words that in the entire academy, the mermaid student’s dormitory was the prettiest sight.

Gazing at the merfolk with their breathtakingly smooth skin, gleaming shells attached to their bodies, and the most lustrous, thick, and healthy hair, each of them having their personal style, she marveled at how something could be more beautiful than the merfolk themselves.