The School for Good and Evil Prequel The Never Prince (fanfic)

Chapter 4

Garth resurfaced in murky water, gasping for breath. It was nothing like the lake in Gavaldon, thick and sludgy rather than crystal clear. He looked around. Other people were in the water and were swimming to who knows where, the mist heavy and thick.

"Hey! Blue eyes!" His eyes darted around the area, trying to find the source of the ominous voice. All of a sudden, the mild smell of trash became a toxic dump. A boy, probably a year younger than he, swam out of the mist. "You planning on drowning out here, or swimming to shore?" the little guy barked. His eyes were red, not from crying, but the actual color. His brown mop of hair was sticking straight up and he had the teeth of a vampire.

"If you couldn't tell, Dracula," Garth spat, "I can't see anything in this fog." The kid sneered.

"Name's Kergy, not Dracula. And I'll lead you to shore, blue eyes." Kergy started swimming into the mist and Garth followed. It wasn't long before they reached shore. Kergy got up first and gave him a hand. "You're pretty fit for a Never, blue eyes," Kergy remarked as Garth climbed out of the water. He stood a whole head taller than the vampire, and yet this kid acted like he was two years older than him.

"Name's Garth, not blue eyes. And you get a little muscle when you have to swim everyday to get home." Kergy smiled.

"We're going to be best buds, Garth." He punched his arm and started walking. Garth wasn't exactly paying attention, wondering if Lilac was ok. The crack of a whip snapped him out of it.

"Get moving!" a wolf howled. Garth ran for the line, falling in behind Kergy. He then noticed the number of uniformed wolves. An army at least, if not more. The crack of whips sounded once in a while, either a student straying from the line or walking too slowly. Each time one hit a person's back or was simply a warning, Garth flinched. Kergy noticed.

"You a baby underneath that muscle?" Garth shook his head. Another crack of a whip sent his hand to his chest. He looked down to see the satchel he had been given still over his shoulder. He held the strap like a life line.

"Scarring experience. Literally and figuratively." He walked faster, wanting to get as far away as possible from the sound of his past. They passed the gates of Evil, dark barbed wire steel gates with black swans at the corners. In between them, carved into the gate, was The School for Evil Edification and Propagation of Sin, a mouthful for "you're a villain."

The line kept moving, headed for the three towers that soared past the fog. The main entrance was wide open, a crocodile's open jaw. Whether that was literally the case or not, Garth didn't know. All he knew was that he was walking through a tunnel that looked like it would eat him for breakfast at any moment.

Garth kept walking until the line reached a stopping point. They stood in some kind of foyer that reeked of sweat and fish caught years ago. Statues lined the walls, gargoyles and the good old Evil queen from Snow White. She was hunched over and holding out an apple. He could practically hear her words.

"Take the apple, my dear." He grinned. Now that was making a name for yourself. I'm a little old granny, but I can take care of myself. The thought of the woman reminded him of another, who he hoped hadn't taken a bite of the witch's apple.