"Weird..." I muttered eating alone in the same table Xavier,Ajax and I eat everytime.
But for some reason I couldn't find them today, I searched everywhere and I couldn't find anyone.
"Maybe Xavier is in the 'studio'..." I said standing up and walking off to the woods in the campus.
I keep walking around, my eyes wondering everywhere until I spotted them, in fact most students were there.
Each one somehow reclused from the other with tents but still in the same place, each dorm hall painting,crating or adding things to a boat.
And just then I remembered, after all the things that happened the other day I forgot everything about this event, The Poe cup where all the halls compete for nothing at all and just the right to brag about it.
I walked over to my hall where I looked at Ajax and Xavier, both of them with a creepy clown makeup.
"Why you took so much time dude!?" I was immediately yelled at by Ajax who looked annoying by the lack of my presence earlier.
"I told you about how I would make everyone's makeup with some things from Enid and you didn't even showed!" Ajax said pointing at his face.
"Don't worry dude I'll figure something out..." I said watching the makeup and then walked to the water.
I stared at my own face in the reflection and touched my cheeks.
"Yeah I already figured it out..."
"Well there's two hours left so help us out in the last touchs here..." Xavier said while finishing some back.
...
"Pussies..." I muttered under my breath,which was caught on by the better hearing of Enid who just looked at me from her boat.
"Clown!" She yelled with fierce competition in her eyes.
Well she isn't entirely right,my face only using dried blood as makeup to make a red nose and lips,my eyes also had rounded wounds crating a sensation of deepness like two empty holes with only my eyes inside.
Thankfully this was a last thing done by myself,and after the grossed out I gave to Ajax and Xavier and the other guys, they got used to it, just didn't want to see in my direction.
But anyone who got upclose would be horrified at least.
I saw Ajax staring at Enid with a stupid smirk and I immediately gave him a snap on the back of his neck, bringing him back.
"I didn't know werewolves also had a charm like sirens..." I said sarcastically.
"Could say the same about you staring at the goth girl..." Ajax said while rubbing the back of his neck.
"I'm just surprised she's using that thing..." I muttered, sadly I knew Enid could hear my voice even so, my only hope being that she wouldn't say my embarrassing thought.
"Just say thanks dude, I've never seen Enid so cute..." Ajax said.
"Get grip the both of you!" Xavier said behind me firmly.
"I don't care if you like girls but I don't want any of you looking away from the prize." He said tapping my backs in a somehow encouraging manner.
"I want to welcome you all to the Edgar Allan Poe cup! This is one of Nevermore's proudest annual traditions, dating back a 125 years." Principal Weems talked through the microphone.
"Each team must row across to Raven Island,pull a flag from Crackstone's Crypt, and hustle back without sinking or bring sunk."
"First team to cross the finish line with their flag wins the cup and bragging rights for a year,as well as some special privileges."
"Oh I love privileges all right..." I muttered.
"Let the Poe Cup begin!" And with that she took a shot on the air, which made everything start rowing towards the island.
"Ok stick to the amazing plan I made in one hour! I'll take on the sirens boat and you go for the other girls." I said while I passed the oar to Xavier.
I stood up and looked at the sirens boat,fairly close, even though I didn't have much practice swimming, my only experience being when I was in Elmore where I took baths in the huge lake and sometimes here in Nevermore after sneaking out, and it was perfect for this since I could technically get my lungs filled of water still be fine.
I jumped into the water,lunging me deep into it so my shade wouldn't be visible outside.
"Come on row faster!" Bianca yelled while keeping a pace which just seemed to increase every passing moment.
Suddenly something flew from the water to the boat,the thing falling just between her feet.
She looked down and immediately screamed horrified.
"A head! It's a head!" She said panicking and letting go of the oar in her hands, every other girl in the boat also looked, and were the same as her screaming in horror.
Then a hand from the water grabbed the boat side and finally I raised up from the water, standing tall over their sitting positions.
"Stay!" Bianca said while taking off her neck forcefully a necklace, but I just smiled to her back.
"Unlucky for you I was able to figure that one out the first time you did it..." I said stomping on the boat,my kick so strong it broke through the wood.
The boat started sinking rapidly and it wasn't like they could just use their sirens capabilities to make it to the island, afterall it would trivialize the game.
I kicked the boat again making another hole and then set foot on the side of the boat,jumping into the water and directed to my own.
I kept going until I finally catched up to my boat,where I jumped pretty easily.
"Hey my dudes..." I said taking my seat back looking at everyone.
"Oh your face's back to normal!" Ajax said looking back to me.
"Yeah it is..." I said thinking how i just left my head in the water with the sinking boat of the sirens.
I looked to the side of the boat into the water and started vomiting straight up just water.
"Gosh dude you had those lungs filled..." Xavier said getting a full view of something he didn't agree to watch.
Finally we got first to the island and everyone rushed there except for me.
I sat on the boat while looking at the ophelia hall girls arrive,my eyes set on Enid.
"Move an inch towards my boat and I'll make you understand the pain of broken nails..." I said standing up in front of her.
She copied my stance,the only difference being her nails like claws.
"Oh I love Mexican standoffs..." I said watching her eye to eye.
I started hearing the others come back and slowly retreated,my eyes still on the menacingly Enid who just kept looking at my boat until Wednesday came back.
Wednesday shot me a glare which I knew she discovered something new, maybe related to our case, I didn't straight up get the full meaning.
Anyways we immediately started rowing back, and now since I was here I was the one rowing instead of Xavier since I was stronger and have infinite stamina.
...
"Congratulations to Caliban Hall!" Larissa yelled into the microphone while Ajax and Xavier in front of me held the cup up with a while screaming of joy.
I saw a black uniform slipping away, and once my eyes were on her face, she made a gesture with her eyes to follow her.
I turned around inside the quad and walked over where she just headed, finding her sitting under a statue of Edgar Allan Poe.
"Something wrong Wednesday? Or you're just feeling kind and wanted to say congrats~" I said teasingly while looking at her frown.
She looked up into the statue,staring under the book at something and then looked at me again.
"Meet me here at night 1 hour after 10, don't bring anyone." She said standing up and leaving.
"And congrats." She said stopping by my side,giving me a soft pat of the shoulder before resuming her steps.