Charlotte slumped down into her seat at the prefect table. She was weary after a restless night of fretful dreams, which she remembered little now that morning had come. James sat in silence eating his breakfast, still unwilling to acknowledge her when he did not have to.

They were no longer alone at the prefect table. Other seniors had at last been selected as prefects. They sat on the dais with them, eating with excitement and delight at their appointment.

As expected, Iseult made prefect and sat in her assigned seat, three places away from Charlotte. Charlotte caught sight of the Blake twins far down the table and Holly Childs, a girl who could turn invisible, sat beside them.

Lucio Anderson sat to Charlotte's right; a tall, thin boy with long, elegant features, pale brown eyes and auburn hair. Charlotte had never warmed to him. Not only was he a suck-up to the staff, he was cruel. He was one of Elmhirst's particular favourites and swanned through the school tormenting others.

Lucio was not full of his own self-worth without reason. His alteration was strong, terrifying even. Not as terrifying as Charlotte's of course, but nothing was. With a mere thought Lucio could produce fire and bend it to his will. His destructive power was match by few others in the year.

Even though she wasn't fond of him, she had never had a particularly bad experience with him. He was annoying and too loyal to Elmhirst, but he had to be easier to talk to than James.

"Congratulations on becoming a prefect," Charlotte said. She was making an effort at least.

"Thanks," he said. His tone was his usual gloating norm. "I guess I should be congratulating you too, though I didn't expect it". There was a slight cut to his words, but Charlotte ignored them. It wasn't as if she had expected to be head girl herself.

"You were not the only one. I'm still in a state of shock," she sighed, pushing her food around her plate.

"You'll have to behave now," he smirked, slicing a piece of apple on to his plate.

Charlotte gritted her teeth. She remembered now why she didn't usual talk to him. "I guess so". She paused. "Do you know who your partner for the Captain's Game is?"

"I do," he grinned again, stabbing a slice of apple with his knife and eating it.

"And you're not going to tell me?" Charlotte laughed after a long silence.

"I can't go giving you the advantage," he replied. He didn't even look at her as she spoke.

"That doesn't seem fair," Charlotte said. "You know who I am paired with – Heads of House remember. I mean it's not really giving me the advantage against your alteration anyway," she smiled. She could see an arrogant smile touch the corner of his lips. Flattery was his weakness.

"He's with Holly Childs," James growled

Charlotte glanced at James who was glaring at her. She hadn't realised he was listening to them. Charlotte opened her mouth to tell him to mind his own business, but thought better of it in front of Lucio. They didn't need their inability to get on to become public news.

"Holly Childs? Really?" Charlotte sighed, looking back to Lucio. Lucio clinked his tongue, his brown eyes dancing with glee as he looked between them. "Fire and invisibility, sounds like a winning combination," she said in a sarcastic tone.

"Against moving things about and the mysterious talent you have, how could we ever stand a chance?" he said in a dry tone. He looked away from Charlotte, disinterested now that she had stopped flattering him. She chuckled and looked across the crowd. Not many of the students even believed she had an alteration. They had never seen it. She had never allowed them to see it.

"My mysterious talent, Lucio made sure I became Head of House above you. It's far more coveted than a bit of fire-bending. Elmhirst values me far above you". She knew exactly what to say to make her words hurt. He was an easy target. For all his smugness, he was so afraid of being second best that it was almost comical.

"We will see about that," Lucio said, pursing his lips. "I'll remind him who's the strongest.

Charlotte forced a laugh.

"Lucio, nothing Holly can do will be able to hide you from me when that exhibition starts," she said in an almost threatening tone.

Lucio raised an eyebrow at her but didn't seem to want to engage with her anymore, turning to speak to Harry Thornton instead.

"He's just wounded because he fancied himself as head of house," James said in a quiet voice. "He will always think he is supposed to win. He thinks he has the most desirable alteration. He just doesn't seem to realise that fire destroys everything."

Charlotte frowned. Of course she knew everything James was saying. His jealousy and fear of losing were clear as day. It was pitiful to be honest. Or at least it would have been if he had a decent personality.

"It could destroy us too," she breathed, her voice low so Anderson wouldn't hear her.

"Only if we want it too," James shrugged. "I've been battling against Lucio my whole life. He is not as strong as he would have us believe". James' voice had fallen to a whisper too, his tone harsh.

Charlotte nodded, closing her eyes for a moment. She wished she could return to her room. She needed sleep.

The thought of the Captain's Exhibition had kept her awake. She was panicking because she knew amongst all the others she would never be able to use her alteration, not yet. She hoped she could make it through some of the Opening Exhibition without it, but the Captain's Game would be impossible.

She knew she had to learn to control it. If she didn't she would never be able to leave the island. She would become a Forgotten. Or Worse.

These worries had been plaguing her mind since she had become Head Girl, but it was only as she lay in bed, waiting for dawn to break, that she had come up with a plan that might offer some help.

"We will have to work something out," she said, her voice strained. James looked at her. "For the Captain's Exhibition. We need to plan our game".

James paused, thrumming his fingers against the table. He was staring ahead, not looking at Charlotte.

"You'll have to do your work yourself," he said at last, glancing at her with a cold expression.

He stood up, readying to leave but he paused, looking at her, his eyes clouding.

"I can't work with you. It's just not a good idea," he said his voice tense. "It's too dangerous".

James left without another word, without an apology or any greater explanation.

She frowned, staring at her untouched breakfast. Even he was too afraid to work with her, the strongest student in the year. Anger rushed through her body, making her heart hammer. She balled her fists.

She was angry with him for being so narrow minded, for refusing to accept her and their situation. She was dangerous yes, but she was willing to try something.

She sighed. She knew it wasn't his fault she was the way she was. It was their fault. It was the school. It was Elmhirst. There was no point in blaming him for something they had made her.

There was no point in placing the blame on herself either. Yet she knew that was a lie. She knew that the dark part inside her, was as much a part of her as her left arm.

At least she could control her left arm.

She knew that it was her duty to control her alteration and if she couldn't, it was her problem too. At times she knew she could quiet it, silence it, even when it lashed out at her, but she feared letting it loose. She feared she would never be able to reel it back in.

It had been years since she had even tried and she had been punished more times for refusing to use it. But now she would have no choice. It was up to her, either she controlled it or she would not finish this year alive.

She tapped the implant again, making up her mind.

Charlotte stood up and searched the staff table for Doctor Porter. She sat beside Doctor Beasley. Both doctors instructed them during their training sessions. White-haired Doctor Beasley was harsh and showed a strong dislike for all his students, but Doctor Porter was different. She was different than all the other staff and the only way Charlotte could describe it was that Charlotte actually liked Doctor Porter.

"Excuse me, Doctor Porter," Charlotte interrupted, trying to appear polite and unassuming. Doctor Beasley scared her and she didn't need to draw his enmity at that moment.

"Oh, good morning Miss Owens," Dr Porter smiled. "We were just talking about the senior training session yesterday. You did very well. You defeated all you opponents didn't you?" she said in a sweet voice.

"Almost," Charlotte said, a blush creeping up her neck. "I drew in one of the matches. I couldn't best Ian O'Connell".

"Nobody ever can," Dr Porter replied.

"Nor can he ever win. It is a waste of time even having him in the programme any longer. He should be Forgotten," Doctor Beasley said in a harsh tone.

Charlotte glanced at the beefy man, trying to conceal her dislike for him. Ian was talented, though he lacked focus. It was hardly enough reason for him to become Forgotten.

Charlotte bit her lip to stop herself from retaliating. The last thing she needed was a trip to detention.

"Doctor Porter, I was wondering if I could speak to you later – in private. I am trying to prepare for the exhibitions and could use your expertise".

Doctor Beasley looked at her with disdain, but Doctor Porter grinned and nodded. Her enthusiasm always shocked Charlotte.

"Of course, Miss Owens. Come to my office at ten and I will see what I can do," she said.

Charlotte smiled and thanked her, moving away from the staff table before she said something she shouldn't. With James refusing to help, she knew Porter was her only chance.

Although as Charlotte passed out of the Food Hall, she couldn't shake the feeling that this new exercise was already a waste of time.

Thanks so much for reading Altered! I hope you are enjoying it so far. I would really appreciate it if you could take the time to vote and comment. It really helps me out! Thanks in advance, Sorcha x

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