Teenage Vampyrs, Enchanteds, and Shapeshifters join the Otherworlder Academy to train to fight off a demon horde and save the Otherworlder realm!
Welcome to the rewrite of The Otherworlders! (This is v2 version, which explains the odd read to vote r...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Ava sits on an ornate bench tucked into an alcove in the wood-paneled hallway of the upper floor dorm wing. Her feet are folded beneath her and she's quietly reading a book.
Farid, headed for the Vampyr wing, passes by.
Ava doesn't notice him until he backs up and ducks down to see what she's reading. "The Alchemist, huh?" he says.
Ava looks up and when she sees him, she cracks a wide, goofy smile.
"Yeah, I found it in the library." She laughs. "I thought it was a textbook at first. And then I realized it was Paul Coelho. I've heard so much about this book; I've been meaning to read it forever." She exhales. "I just needed a break from all the combat training, you know? And don't get me started on all the Otherworlder history." She rolls her eyes.
Farid smiles as he leans back against the post on the opposite wall. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Time with the Masters, while educational, is definitely... um... let's just say it's intense," he finishes with a smile. Then he points at her book. "You know, I really loved that book when I first read it. I think I was, like, twelve or thirteen at the time, and it totally changed my life--changed my entire perspective on the world. Well, that and the Tao Te Ching."
Ava's smile grows wider, if that's even possible. "You've read the Tao Te Ching! No kidding! Me too!" She exclaims, barely able to hide her enthusiasm. What are the chances of meeting such a kindred spirit in a Vampyr?
"Although, to be honest," she says. "I read the version of the Tao Te Ching that uses the Winnie the Pooh stories as an allegory. I don't know if you've heard of it. It's called the Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. I was fourteen when I first read it. I mean, I tried to read the original, but to be honest, it was a bit over my head."
"Hey, as long as the message is the same." Farid shrugs. "Tao Te Ching, Tao of Pooh, it's all good."
They both laugh at this. Then, Ava closes her book and tilting her head, considers Farid carefully. "Can I ask you a personal question?" she says.
"Sure." Farid slips his hands into the pocket of his jeans.
"Are you and Sebastian the same age?" Ava asks. "I mean, you seem so much more... um..." she pauses, wanting to tread carefully with this one "...well, you seem much more mature than him."
Farid laughs out loud. "Yeah, we are," he affirms. "And you're not the first to make that observation." He looks down the hall, then back at her. Suddenly, he gets serious. "I'm... Well... I'm actually older, by about 10 minutes," he admits.
Ava scrunches up her face, confused. "Oh, so wait, you're twins?" she posits.
Farid shakes his head slowly. "Nope."
"Step-brothers?" She ventures another guess.
Farid shakes his head again. Then, after a beat he says, "We're half-brothers. Same father, different mothers."
