The trip to The Academy wasn't nearly as long or exotic as I had expected it to be. We literally hopped a bus across town, and then took a cab to this giant, English-looking estate. It was a beautiful place made of brick with soaring chimneys and the only real climbing ivy and flowers that I'd ever seen in person.
As we got out of the car and I got my bags, I just stood out front, on the cobblestone drive and admired it's beauty, a tiny sigh of happiness and anticipation leaving me. I turned my head and smiled at Agatha when she patted my shoulder.
"Welcome home, dear" she said softly, her friendly eyes crinkling at the corners and twinkling with good humor. I loved that she seemed so pleased to have me. It was wonderful to feel wanted. I'd never had that before, and it warmed my heart and made it swell with affection for this woman, who could just as easily have ignored my cry for help, and gone about her business. "Lets go inside and get you settled. I'm sure you'd like to meet everyone, as well" she said, leading me up to the big front door and opening it, ushering me and Georgie, who I'd put down in the driveway, through the doors, before closing them behind us.
I couldn't help but be mildly anxious about meeting new people. I loved that I had the opportunity to meet people that had gifts like mine, but I worried that they wouldn't like me. This situation seemed so nearly perfect, that I couldn't help but just wait for something to go wrong. I looked around at the cozy atmosphere of the inside of the house, smiling to myself. It was seriously like this house was some English Manor that had been lifted right out of a Charles Dickens novel. I loved it. Georgie seemed to like it too, staying with us as we went up the big staircase off the main entryway because he was a good boy, but also taking short side trips here and there to sniff the new sniffs that were suddenly available to his tiny doggy nose.
Agatha lead me down a short hallway, around a corner, and to a regular, unassuming wood door. She smiled and opened it, ushering me through, seeming excited to introduce me to the place that I would be calling home. I smiled and looked around the room, pleased with the gabled window, complete with cushion so that I could look out over the surrounding trees and fields while I read, or relaxed, or whatever. I also was pleased to note that there was an attached bathroom. I spun around a little and smiled at the cute four poster bed, made up with a pretty pink lace coverlet and matching curtains in the windows. So adorable...
"You like it then?" Agatha said, smiling ear-to-ear, clearly already knowing the answer.
I nodded vigorously and gave her a big smile, the first one I'd been able to manage since we'd met. "It's perfect, Agatha!" I beamed at her, making her smile even more brightly. "Thank you so much!" I said, walking over and hugging her on impulse. I wasn't normally a super touchy-feely kind of girl, but Agatha was so warm and motherly...she was quickly starting to feel like the mother that I wished I'd had...
"You're so welcome, dear" she said warmly, squeezing me for emphasis before disengaging and opening my door again. "I'm off to assemble the others in the living room. It's the room to the right of the front door. Come on down and meet everyone when you've had a moment to settle in" she invited, giving me one last fond look before closing my door behind her, leaving me in my new room to acclimate.
"Wow, Georgie...this place is great, huh?" I asked, sitting on my new bed and petting his head fondly when he hopped up to sit with me. He wagged his tail furiously and seemed to smile at me, and I could hear him thinking excitedly of exploring the rest of the house. He'd smelled the cats, and he wondered what they were. He'd never encountered one before. The whole thing made me giggle. "Ok, baby boy. Time to meet and greet" I said, tapping my thigh for him to come along, as I headed out of my room and down the stairs to meet the others.
The first thing I noticed, with an automatic squeal of glee, was that Jimin was sitting in the living room with the others, smiling warmly at me. When he saw me he lit up and stood, opening his arms to me as I threw myself into them. I didn't have time to register that it probably looked odd to those in the room who couldn't see spirits. I was just so excited to see my friend, that I didn't care. I'd been half afraid that he wouldn't be able to find me here. "Jiminie!" I smiled, pulling away slightly, looking excitedly up into his face. "I'm so glad you're here. You wouldn't believe the amount of shit that's gone on!" I gushed excitedly, before Agatha cleared her throat behind me, bringing me back to reality.
Jimin laughed, and sat down again on the couch, patting the empty spot next to him, between Agatha and himself. I sat and blushed a little at Agatha, feeling embarrassed. "Sorry...it's just...well, Jimin is here" I said.
"Who's Jimin?" I heard a masculine voice ask, drawing my attention to the very attractive dark haired guy sitting nearest to me on the couch.
"Jimin is clearly the sexy Korean snacc platter sitting next to her" another guy said, clearly able to see Jimin, and liking what he saw...a whole lot. I giggled and Jimin smiled, looking down at his hands and then glancing back up at the guy who'd been checking him out. If spirits could blush, I bet my sweet Jiminie would be, right now.
"Lets all...stop there, and introduce ourselves, shall we?" Agatha asked, seeming amused by the situation, but wanting things to be orderly. I nodded. "Why don't you introduce yourself, dear, and tell the group about your gifts" Agatha said, smiling warmly around the group, her warm grey eyes dancing with good humor.
"Um, ok..." I said, wringing my hands a little awkwardly, smiling at Jimin when he chuckled and patted my shoulder, encouragingly. I looked around the room at the other people I was going to be living with, and I was sort of taken aback. There were 7 other people in the house...and they were all men. I guess it was kind of, whatever...but it was going to take some getting used to. They were all really good looking...like 10/10. The one who'd been hitting on Jimin had really pretty features, and I wondered, absently, if he would show me how he did his makeup...it was seriously flawless. He smiled and winked at me, exactly as if he had heard my thoughts and I started, my eyes going wide. He giggled in a way that was entirely adorable and gave me a finger-wave.
"You'll get used to it, hun" he said. I smiled and nodded, clearing my throat again, planning to go on. I could tell that I was going to like him.
"So...my name is Aubria. Most people call me Bria..." I said, trying not to let my nerves keep me from talking as I glanced around the room shyly. "I'm...I...I don't know the right terms for what I can do, so I guess bear with me" I said, earning a small smile from a guy who hadn't spoken yet. He had super deep, kind eyes. I looked away, blushing for some reason, as I tried to keep my train of thought, and continue. "I can sort of 'speak' to animals...you know, I can tell what they're thinking, and they seem to understand me when I talk to them, more so than other humans" I said, grinning a little wider when a handsome guy with a cat in his lap and another one perched on his shoulder nodded at me, seeming amused. "Oh, and I can obviously see and talk to spirits" I said, laughing a little as I gestured to Jimin. I had the presence of mind now, to look around the room and notice who seemed to actually be able to see him. It looked like it was just the guy with the pretty eyes, and the guy who could read my mind and wanted to eat Jimin.
"Welcome to the house" another guy said, smiling happily at me. "I love it when we get noobs" he said, his entire manner that of a friendly puppy. He had a happy demeanor, was crazy muscular, and seemed to have an amazing amount of energy. I loved him instantly. "We're all jokers, so if anybody plays a prank on you, try not to take it personally. It means we like you" he said, giving me a playful little wink that made me giggle a little bit.
"Lets go around the group and introduce ourselves in the same way that Bria just did" Agatha lead. "I'll start" she said, grinning at me and sitting forward, as the guys quieted down. "My name is Agatha, and I am blessed with the gifts of clairvoyance , aurration, and mild telekinesis. In lay terms that means that I can sometimes have visions of a possible future, or an event in the past, and can use those visions to guide my actions, I can read the auras of those near me and tell if they mean me good or ill, and I can move objects about a bit" she finished, taking a deep breath after the mouthful she had just said, and smiling at me.
"Wow..." I said, impressed.
"Ok, me next!" I heard the excited guy say, who'd warned me about the pranks. "I'm Jackson. My gift is teleportation , and translocation. I can be here" he said, standing, "but also here" he added, suddenly appearing behind me, chuckling when he startled me, "and then here, again" he finished, smiling big as he appeared back in his chair. I clapped my hands appreciatively, and he smiled bigger, doing a silly little extra bow. "I'm also a tiny bit precognitive...so once in a while I get feelings, or can tell what's going to happen a few minutes or hours before it does. It's actually not that useful" he said, making me laugh. "Imagine knowing you're going to stub your toe at some point, and walking around, being extra careful for hours, only to do that exact thing, right after you've let your guard down!" he complained good naturedly, making me laugh harder.
"Bummer" I giggled out, making a few of the others chuckle, as well. One of them was the guy with the pretty eyes. I couldn't help that my gaze kept being drawn to him. It was kind of embarrassing.
"Who's this little fella?" the cat guy asked, looking down at Georgie, who had stationed himself at his feet, sitting quietly, tail wagging as he excitedly studied the cats. I could tell the cats were none too thrilled with his presence and grinned at them.
"He's really sweet, guys. His name is Georgie. No need to be scared. If he comes on too strong, just bat at him. One good smack and he'll keep his distance in the future" I said to the cats conspiratorially.
Georgie wined and gave me a look of betrayal and I grinned at him. "You know I love you, baby boy, but you have to learn some manners some time" I teased, laughing with the cat guy when he huffed off and intentionally sat with Jackson, who looked ridiculously pleased with this new development, petting him enthusiastically as he settled down in his lap.
I smiled around the group, basking in the fact that, while people had watched this last interaction with curiosity, there was no fear or any negative reactions. People just seemed interested in observing me using my gifts. It was amazing to feel so...free. I smiled a little bit, down at my lap and looked back up, my eyes drawn to the guy I couldn't seem to stop looking at. He had a small grin on his face, and his pretty eyes seemed...amused. He was very tall and muscular looking, and I liked how he kept his hair kind of natural looking and shaggy, coming about to his ears. It was fun to watch him push it out of his pretty eyes...He looked like he enjoyed the view as his eyes wandered over me, too. I blushed and looked away, not knowing what to do with myself. Jesus...I'd been here 5 minutes and I was already a complete hoe for some guy I didn't even know. Fun times...
I cleared my throat and smiled around the group, looking to the next guy in the circle expectantly. He was also kind of tall and well built, his dark hair parted in the middle. He looked at me and grinned a little bit. "I'm Jinyoung" he started, but was interrupted by the guy who'd been looking me over as he seemed to have a coughing fit.
"Junior" he coughed out, snickering into his hands when Jinyoung looked at him like he wanted to strangle him.
"Yugyeom....I will kill you" Jinyoung said, running his index finger across his throat threateningly, but cracking a smile when Yugyeom only cackled louder. These children...I giggled a little to myself, loving the dynamics between the boys.
"Anyway," Jinyoung continued. "I'm mildly telepathic, nothing as strong as what Bambam can do" he said, motioning to the guy who was still eye-fucking poor Jiminie...but now that I looked closer, Jimin seemed to be into it. Hmm...
Jinyoung snapped his fingers at me to get my attention back, causing me to blush a little and throw him an apologetic look. "Besides telepathy, my other gift is more of a trick, I guess" he said. "I can make people feel emotions that I want them to feel for short periods of time" he said. My eyes widened and I looked around the group, my attention returning to Bambam when he laughed. "Yep, this guy never has trouble getting into a club, or getting a good table at a restaurant" he quipped, making me giggle.
Jinyoung rolled his eyes and grinned over at me. "Welcome to the house" he said, in a friendly enough manner, and then pointed to Bambam, who sat next to him. "Your turn, horn-dog" he teased, but Bambam just chuckled and bit his lip, his eyes passing over Jimin again. I laughed outright and he smiled over at me.
"I'm Bambam" he said, nodding to me. "I'm a medium, like you, so I can definitely see your friend, over there" he said, smiling in a flirty way, and waving to Jimin, who chuckled and waved back. "I can also aurrate, like Agatha, and I'm somewhat clairvoyant " he finished, smiling over at me, his eyes kind. "I'll give you that makeup lesson any time, b-t-dubs" he said, making me laugh.
"I'm Yugyeom" the hot guy with the pretty eyes said, making me grin a little and try not to blush as he looked at me, making and holding eye contact as he spoke. I loved his voice. It was deep and musical, and it felt good in my ears, as stupid as that sounds..."I'm a medium" he said, "Hi Jimin" he smiled and waved in a friendly way, before continuing, "and I'm also psychometric" he said. I raised a questioning brow and he smiled. "I know things about people and objects when I touch them. It's like a mix between telekinesis and clairvoyance ...I just have to touch you" he said, looking me in the eyes and giving me a grin that I'm sure he didn't mean to be as sexy as I found it...damn if it didn't go straight to my lady business...wow...
I registered his chuckle and spared him another glance, watching him sit back and sweep his soft looking dark hair away from his eyes, looking to the guy next to him, the cat guy. Cat guy smiled at me and sat up a little straighter, unseating the cat perched on his shoulder, who grumpily sauntered off into another room. "I'm JB" he said. "I'm mainly precognitive...so I pretty frequently get flashes or have visions of something in the future. I'm also like you in that I can translate, the technical term for what we do when we speak to our animal friends" he said. I smiled big, lighting up a little at the knowledge that there was another person here, who could do what I did with animals.
"Next is me. I'm Mark" the guy next to JB said, flashing me a smile full of perfect, white teeth. He seriously had a super attractive smile, and he was also very good looking, his fluffy hair dyed a blonde color that you wouldn't expect to look good, but he pulled off really well. He was kind of built like a model, tall and lean, with just enough muscle to keep him from looking too thin. I returned his smile, and he continued. "I'm mildly telekinetic and precognitive, but my main gift is levitation" he said, smiling big again, his eyes sparkling in a friendly way. I could tell that he was just a happy guy. I liked him immediately. "Mainly I use levitation to help me do flips and fancy moves when I dance" he added.
"You should come watch us dance, later" Yugyeom said, smiling over at me, giving me hot flashes with the way he was looking at me. He probably wasn't even trying. I was so ridiculous.
"Yeah!" Mark enthused. "We dance in the gym when we get bored and do Youtube videos and stuff. It's fun. You should definitely join us" he said, giving me a friendly smile and shooting a knowing look at Yugyeom, who looked away innocently.
"That just leaves me, Youngjae" the last guy said, the one sitting in the chair next to Jimin, who had been either flirting with Bambam, or snickering at me as I tried not to eye-fuck Yugyeom, this entire time. "I'm psychometric, like Yugyeom, but I'm also a strong post-cognitive. I can see the past pretty clearly when I'm given a focus. It's too bad the authorities are too closed minded to let me help...I could probably do some good" he said, shaking his head, looking like he really did want to help solve murders and crimes. I admired that and smiled over at him, soaking in the good will that seemed to radiate from the little grin he shot me back. "Oh!" he said, as if forgetting something. "I can also do this" he said, snapping his fingers at the little fireplace to my right, and laughing when I jumped over against Jimin as it burst into a roaring fire.
"Yes, our Youngjae is a gifted pyrotecnic" Agatha said, giving him a fond smile as she took my hand and stood with me. "Why don't we all break up and give our newest house mate a chance to settle into her room for the night?" Agatha suggested, making me sigh in relief. To be honest, I was exhausted, and this had all been a little much. These guys all had big personalities, and I'd been through a lot in the last 24 hours.
"Bed does sound nice" Yugyeom said, standing and stretching out. I tried not to look. Honest to god, I really did...
"I bet" Bambam snickered, laughing when Yugyeom kicked him and then ran out of the room, laughing as Bambam chased him.
These children...I laughed and waved to everyone. "Nice to meet you all. Thank you for being so welcoming" I said. "G'night".
They all waved and called goodnight to me as well, as Georgie and I made our way back to our room and I collapsed on the bed, feeling my sweet black floof snuggle into my side as I drifted off to sleep.
244Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7gVJG7GXt7
