• Chapter One




    Sitting on my bed I packed my room away into a tiny back suit case that held my cloths. I wasn't the really preppy type, but I wasn't the gothic type either. I was normal, I had a bit of everything. It had been almost four years since my mom and dad died and I had been living with my aunt, her husband, and their amazingly annoying daughter Zoey. I had sent a form for Baites Academy at the begining of the summer. It was a very select academy, meant you had to meet the quailtys and only a handful of people met that standard. Thats because you had to have a magical aura and you had to be a shifter.
    Shifters is a easier way of saying shape shifters. It's not as easy as it looks either, it takes loads of concentration. Thats why they have Baites Academy, to teach you how to control everything and hide you from the real world. Naturally I got accepted quickly because my family has been going to this school since it was built. So have seven other familys, they call us Royals too. My aunt graduated there, but she married a human named Henry and had there retched daughter Zoey.
    School didn't start for another nine days and the plane ride would be fourteen long hours. Did i mention the school is in Europe. Liverpool England to be exact and I'm coming from Colorado Springs, Colorado. The plane ticket cost a lot of money and I had to catch hell from Henry and Zoey, but my aunt said I had to go to this school and demanded it.
    My plane was tommorrow night and I had started packing early, I don't think any of them minded me going away for a few years. I was suprised when my aunt walked in carrying a bundled up blanket and a box that she had to drag in behind her.
    "Whats that?" I asked curiously.
    "Stuff from when me, your mother, and your father were at Baites" She smiled sitting on the floor and pulling the box infront of her. I sat next to her out of pure curiousity. She dragged her nail across the tape cutting the box open. She pulled out something that looked like a shoe box.
    "I old shoebox?" I asked confused. What did that have to do with anything?
    "No silly, Its a memory box one for each year at BA" She said checking it for spots where it might have been falling apart. She then put it in her lap and pulled the top off.
    "This was year one. This was a picture of the dorm room and our dorm we split." She handed me an old paper that had collected a lot of dust and was turning the brown-ish red color that they turned before going black and white. The dorm house was built like a castle. They had those old TVs that if you saw one now it would be out of date. The couches were old and lumpy and looked brown, from a hallway you could see a kitchen and it looked like people were cooking food. I think i spotted meatloaf on a plate and shivered. Yuck! Finally my eyes rested to the center of the photograph where my mom stood grinning happily and waving to the camera.
    Her hair was a light brown which my original hair color is, She had on a weird uniform that it looked like those ugly jumpers you wore in elementray. The ones thathad two thick straps of cloth that connected into a V at the top of the skirt. She had a white blouse on under it. Some how it all looked good on her. I made a mental note to strip the color out of my hair before school started. My aunts voice scared me when she spoke.
    "You and your mother look like twins, Taylor" She grinned then messed up my hair. "If only you washed that ugly orange from your hair." She laughed.
    "I know I'm going to strip the color, so tomorrow we gotta buy hair stripping stuff before we leave for the air port." I said grinning. We spent to time digging through the boxes as she told me each story that went along with each Item in the box. Before she left my room she turned and looked at me.
    "Your mother fit in BA perfectly. I have no doubt you will too" She smiled and hugged and kissed me goodnight.

    I woke up to my alarm clock buzzing. slowly and groggily I lifted my hand to hit the button and pulled my pillow over my head. It took me fifteen minutes to get up and when I walked to the bathroom I almost screamed. My hair was its original color again, no not my hair color it was the redish-brown hair color from the picture. I closed my eyes shut as hard as possible and concentrated. When I opened them again it was normal. I breathed with Relief. So my powers were coming in, great. I rolled my eyes.
    I turned on the hot water for a shower, I stripped my clothes and got in. The water hot water shocked me at first, adventually I relaxed and let the water wash away my case of nerves. When I got out I blow dried and straightened my hair. It was naturally really wavey, I began to feel almost normal. I grabbed a bag from under my sink and began loading all my bathroom stuff that I would need. Today was going to be a long day. The first thing I did was go to the store and buy the hair strip stuff. It took me an hour to get out of wal-mart. I had to buy the stuff and for the hell of it, i bought a small pack of purple and white hair dye. I had a reason. I picked out more eyeliner in just about every color I could find. I liked to match. I bought concealer, eyeliner, and mascarea. I don't believe in eyeshadow and blush.
    I loaded my two bags into my bug. I had wanted a lime green one since I was twelve. Yeah it sounds dorkish, but its true. It was a somewhat new one. I hated leaving it here for that damn Zoey. I would get it back on breaks. When I got home. All the boxes i had packed and everything else, my books, comforter, cloths, Shoes, and anything else was packed up. I guess i didn't realize it was two in the afternoon.
    I shoved my two bags into my draw-sting bookbag and put in my favorite book. I slipped in my phone charger, glad that I got the plan that gave me unlimited texting but my minutes were limited. I could reach all the way to China, Europe, and Africa so I was glad I would still have it.
    When it came time to leave I put on my bookbag and walked into the living room. Everything was sent so when I got to the school they would be there waiting. We had gone school shopping. All I really needed was a folder for each class and a note book.
    The car ride was long as I watched us leave my poor green bug in the driveway. I plugged in my head phones with my IPOD listening to what Zoey called Hard rock. I Just laughed because all it was Metro Station. We were total opposites. I loved it to. I would blast music and just laughed when it pissed her off enough. Then it hit me.
    "Aunt Lissa did you pack my Laptop?" I asked. I needed my laptop it was a necessity. She just smiled and laughed.
    "Did you forget to grab it? Taylor be glad I'm looking out for you" She laughed and handed me my laptop with the power cord.
    "Your a life saver"I said greatfully
    "I saw it on your desk and thought to grab it. I always am" She said as I slid my hand over the top and grinned. I shoved my power cord in the bag and held on to the computer. It was a simple DELL the model INSPIRATION it wasn't new but it was a damn good laptop.
    Zoey and Henry didn't wait for the plane with me and aunt Lissa. We sat in the hard seats covered with the cushion that made you itch. I was bouncing with excitement. Aunt Lissa was holding me down by my shoulders laughing at me. When it was time to board the plane she hugged me.
    "I'm proud of you, your mother would be too"She said and I hugged her back. I was the last to board, and I was crying.

    I sat in regular seats rather then first class but that didn't bother me. People always over exagerated about sitting in regular class, it wasn't that bad. They offered food, and peanuts. By the sixth hour I felt sick of reading and pulled out my phone. When I turned it on and slid it open. People called me a nerd to have a side kick, now that there was touch screens. That didn't bother me, It had a keyboard so I was good. No signal, thats great. I rolled my eyes
    and turned it off and closed it.
    When the plane landed they had a charter bus waiting. The title read Baites Academy in big yellow letters. It was hard not to spot. I gathered in a crowed of kids loading on the bus showing two men there acceptance papers. I got mine out of my pocket. I guess I spaced out because I jumped skyhigh when I heard a voice directed to me.
    "Hello!"A male voice said. It sounded cheerful and happy, reminding me of a puppy. I turned to look at the person who spoke. His hair was brown with a spot of blonde and he was at least four inches taller than me. I felt so tiny and I had grown up being one of the tallest in my classes. I was a simple five foot six.
    "Hi! I'm Taylor" I said holding my hand out for a handshake.
    "I'm Casey" He sounded once again cheerful. He moved sideways slightly. Standing behind him was a girl. She had black hair with a blonde spot. She was short. They were total opposites, yet exactly the same.
    "Twins?" I asked.
    "Duh!" He said counding happy that I had asked.
    "Yes, I'm Beth" She said in a quiet voice. I grinned.
    "Thats so cool!" I said as i shifted my laptop under my arm and bounced up and down slightly. Did I mention I could be a total nerd. They both just laughed and looked at eachother like they were having a mental conversation.
    When it came my turn I showed them my acceptance paper and slid into a seat. They were three to a row with a little TV for movies. How convient. I thought as both Beth and Casey got on the bus. I just waved them over. It was good having two friends. They put on a movie, but I didn't really pay attention to what it was. Instead I watched the scenery pass by as I headed off towards my new school.