"A guy needs somebody - to be near him. A guy goes nut if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick" (John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men)

Much to Fayez's relief, when he opened his eyes again, he was laying on the ground in front of the Institute for Supernatural Beings. There was no mistaking it, as the Institute was exactly the way he had pictured it, based on his parents' words. It was a castle, but it didn't look the slightest like the castle in which Fayez had grown up. This castle was much bigger, but there was something unwelcoming about it, something so cold about his dark brick walls and huge towers that Fayez almost wanted to run back into the forest.

And meet this crazy Faya again? I'd rather try my luck and see for myself what's so great about the institute.

There was a problem, though. As far as he could see, the castle had no doors, and there wasn't a single soul around to show him the way.

Why is everything so fucking complicated already? I'm getting fed up with all these puzzles. First, the weird lady who tries to get into my head, now, a castle without any doors. Is this supposed to be a 'genius only' kind of Institute? That would be a problem, cause I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer, as Faya so kindly put it. I am, after all, a Slytherin at heart, not a freakin Ravenclaw who spends his days solving riddles.

After closely examinating a wall where a huge door was DRAWN - the people who designed this castle probably had a weird sense of humor - Fayez eventually noticed that there was a small inscription above the painting.

Show your arm - was all that was written.

Feeling even more confused, Fayez did so and ....

... nothing happened.

"Oy! How much longer will it take you to finally get it? You have to show your other arm, you moron! The one with the sign on it"

"Huh?" was Fayez eloquent reply, as he looked up and startled when he saw a small young man sitting on top of the ramparts.

"Do it now, so we can both get inside" urged the guy, with an exasperated voice. "I'm freezing my ass here."

Maybe it wasn't a good idea to just obey some stranger's commands, but Fayez still lifted up the right sleeve of his coat, while being careful not to remove his glove in the process.

As soon as his arm was bared, he heard a high-pitched cry and a few seconds later, the small guy was graciously landing next to him.

"Huh"

"Huh. Huh. Is that all you can say? What are you, some sort of caveman?" the red-haired insolently asked.

"How comes you managed to land unharmed? These walls are so high!" mutters Fayez, who still felt so shocked that he forgot he didn't like talking, especially to rude strangers.

"It talks!" exclaimed the young mand, clapping his hands with a mocking expression, before unceremoniously grabbing Fayez's arm.

His expression turned more serious, then, as he ran his thumb against the purple dot.

Fayez winced at the contact, and did his best not to shake too violently. For someone who hadn't been hugged or kissed in centuries, even the most delicate touch was downright unbearable, but he didn't want to be regarded as a freak on his very first day at the Institute.

" Weird" commented the nameless guy under his breath. "I would have bet The Spirit of The Woods would have place you under Zephyr's command or maybe even Saphos'. I mean, looking at you, I could have never expected... - well, she's supposed to be always right, so we better not question her decisions." he eventually declared, before finally releasing Fayez's arm, much to the latter's relief.

The Spirit of The Woods? Does he mean Faya?

"My name is Helmut" the no-longer nameless guy declared.

An akward silence followed, until Helmut's sudden burst of laughter broke it.

"Oh my God, where in hell do you come from? Don't tell me you have been living with the Spirit of The Woods all these times, never talking to anyone but a bunch of deadly animals? At least, that would explain your weird behaviour"

"My name is Fayez" replied Fayez, successfully hiding the fact that he was a bit offended by Helmut's remark.

"Of course I know who you are. We've been waiting for you, Fayez. Follow me, now"

Without waiting for him to respond, Helmut put his right arm against the fake door, which, under Fayez's astonished gaze, started to turn more solid, until it became a real door.

They entered the castle, which didn't look as unpleasant as Fayez would have thought, although he was used to much more luxurious decorum. Anyway, Helmut was walking so fast that Fayez almost had a hard time to keep in pace with him, and couldn't get a proper look of his new residence.

He wondered why the obviously very talkative red-hair was now almost running into the desert hallways, as if there were some dangers lurking beneath these damp and old tapestries.

That's because he doesn't want to be seen with you a small voice in Fayez's head whispered. He already found out that there's something wrong about you, although he cannot pinpoint what it is exactly.

It doesn't matter, I am not here to make friends, Fayez had to remind himself. I don't have time for that, the only reason I'm here is because I want to learn new skills in order to be able to defeat any supernatural creature that could be a threat to humans.

"How big is this castle exactly?" he asked, successfully keeping an impassive face.

"Very big" replied Helmut, without even turning to look at Fayez. "But don't worry, we're almost there"

"Are we going to meet the headmaster?" Fayez curiously asked.

Helmut stopped so abruptely in his tracks that Fayez ran into him, crushing the poor guy under his weight as he fell.

"Sorry" he said, although it wasn't technically his fault.

"Why are all the students here so fucking big and heavy?" complained Helmut, as he slowly got up and glared at him. He didn't look very threatening, with his small stature and big blue eyes, but Fayez decided to humor him and took a few steps back, his hands raised in a protective gesture.

"Why did you stopped running when I asked about the headmaster, though? I didn't expect you to react that way. It seems a normal question to ask"

Helmut laughed a bit at that, then, as he saw that Fayez was serious, he explained:

"That's because you haven't earned the right to meet the headmaster yet! Come on, Fayez, you just got here ! Most students don't even get the chance to meet the headmaster ever!"

"What about you? Have you ever met them?"

"That's for me to keep a secret and for you to never find out" was Helmut's annoying answer.

Fayez wanted to ask another question, but he decided that it wouldn't be too wise to reveal the true extent of his ignorance about the Institute and the supernatural world in general. Faya had advised him to show a strong and stoic exterior in all circumstances and so far, he hadn't been doing such a great job at following her advice. Plus, he hadn't talked so much since he was a toddler, and he felt pretty exhausted.

Talking to other persons was exhausting. If he had to do this on a daily basis, then he better start taking naps several times a day.

Thankfully, since they had resumed walking, Helmut had slowed down his pace a bit, and Fayez could now see a bit more of his new environment, although there wasn't much to see and they still hadn't met anyone else from the Institute.

That is, until he caught a glimpse of a blond-haired guy who was sitting on a carpet, with his feet bend behind his ears.

That wasn't the guy's impressive flexibility that caused Fayez to stop dead in his tracks, though.

No, it was .... something else.

Without paying any attention to Helmut, who was insistently tugging his sleeve, he took a few steps closer.

That's when the blondie looked up and their eyes met.

Fayez didn't know what about this slender guy made him want to touch him so badly, which was a foreign feeling to him. Sure, the guy was beautiful, in the classic sense of the term, with his blond locks, his blue eyes, and creamy skin. Yet, he wasn't even his type, if he even had a type.

The guy stood up, before taking a few steps of his own in both men's direction, and Fayez could feel Helmut tensing next to him.

He wasn't as small as he first thought, although he was still smaller than Fayez, but that was a given, since Fayez was pretty tall himself. Despite his doll-like appearance, there was something wicked about him, that made Fayez want to reach forward and run away at the same time.

Deciding for both of them that the second option was the best, Helmut tugged Fayez's sleeve with more urgency, bowing to the blond guy and adding "Sorry, Master Zephyr" before he started running again, with Fayez hot on his heels.

They eventually arrived in front of a big red door, at the corner of a narrow corridor. Fayez took the key that Helmut was handing him, and they both entered the room, shutting the door behind them.

"Lord, that was a close one!" Helmut whined, a still distressed expression on his boyish face. "Thank God neither Akhenaton nor Ashur were around this time"

"Huh?"

"You're not supposed to stare at Zephyr for no reason, you ignorant fool!"

"Is Zephyr the blondie from earlier?" was Fayez wild guess, which at least made Helmut laugh a little.

"Who else, genius ? The gorgeous twink that you just saw isn't as harmless as he looks, believe me. Many of his admirers here learnt their lesson the hard way. Beside, had Ashur or Akhenaton seen you, you probably wouldn't have last more than a day here"'

"And Ashur and Akhenaton are..."

"I can't believe you've never heard of any of them! But I guess you'll learn quickly everything you have to know about this place. You don't have much of a choice anyway: either you adapt, or you die"

"That still doesn't tell me who these guys are"

"These guys, as you so casually put it, are the prefects of three of the Six Sections. They are the best students, which got into their position for their outstanding skills and success on the field. Of course, they still have to obey the Chiefs of their Sections, and the Headmaster. However, as a student of the Institute, you are under the prefects' direct command."

"I don't really get what you're trying to explain..."

"Look, Fayez, I don't have much time. You will understand soon enough. All you have to keep in mind, for the time being, is that you have to keep your distance with Zephyr, or Ashur and Akhenaton will end you"

"Why?"

"Because Ashur and Akhenaton are Zephyr's lovers."

"What? Both of them?"

"Why? Are you a judgmental ass, too?"

Fayez felt a surge of guilt for the second time of the day. Sure, Helmut and himself barely knew each other, but Helmut seemed friendly enough, and it felt quite nice to talk to someone his age - stressful, too, but still nice.

"I'm not. I'm just trying to understand... so, anyway, in which Section are you?" Fayez asked, trying to alleviate the mood by changing the topic.

It seemed like his strategy worked, because Helmut smiled, before showing him his arm, which had a blue dot on it.

"Zephyr's team!" he exclaimed with a proud expression, that made him seem like a child who got the best grade in his class. "Ok, I really have to go, now. You have the rest of the day off, but you should be in the Common Hall tomorrow at 7 am. Breakfast is starts at 6 am.

"Wait, Helmut! I don't even know in which Section I am"

Helmut, who had already opened the door, turned back and looked at him with a grim and somehow confused expression.

"Akhenaton's team" he eventually replied. "See you tomorrow, Fayez. And welcome to the ISB"

The door closed behind him, and Fayez went straight for his bed, not even bothering to look at his new bedroom. In a sense, he was relieved that his parents had the wit to asked that he was put in a single room. This way, it would be less hard to hide his deadly secret, the fact that he was cursed from the Gods.

However, as he sank his head into the fluffy pillow, he felt more lonely than he had ever felt in hundred years of existence, and almost wished Helmut and him would share a room.

It seemed that, no matter if he was truly alone or living among others, he would still be a observer, standing on the sidelines and wondering how people around him could look so lively.

He slowly removed his gloves, and put his bared hands flat against his stomach. It took a while, but eventually a burning pain started to diffuse into his entire body, making him shiver, as his resolve hardened.

He closed his eyes, welcoming the pain, which not only helped him keep a cold mind, but never left a single scar on his unblemish skin. It was the only time he was glad his hands were cursed, because he could turn the pain against himself without anybody knowing about it.

He wasn't here to make friends, he repeated to himself, again and again, like a mantra. He had to learn everything he could as quickly as possible, so he could get out of this creepy place and finally be useful to the weakest creatures in the world.