The Beast of Shadows

Chapter 6 (Indi's POV)

               
The next morning, I was jolted awake by an obnoxious alarm blaring through what felt like the entire building. The racket, though it lasted only thirty seconds, was enough to make me wish I were back in the caves, despite having had the best sleep of my life here. Groaning in frustration, I pulled my pillow over my head, desperately trying to muffle the sound. My heightened hearing made the noise unbearable, and I longed for silence.

The alarm finally stopped, replaced by Charles' overly cheerful voice. "Good morning, students! Breakfast will be served in the main hall in thirty minutes. Rise and shine for a new day!" he announced with unnerving enthusiasm. Did people really wake up at this hour every day? I hoped not.

I lay there for another twenty minutes, until distant barking caught my attention. It had to be Gloom, since no one else seemed disturbed. As I sat up, the door swung open, and Gloom bounded into the room, grabbing the edge of my blanket in her mouth.

"Don't do this to me, girl," I joked, but she just whined and tilted her head, waiting for my next move. Reluctant to face the morning chatter outside, I tried to pull the blanket back over me, but Gloom had other plans. She tugged the blanket from my grasp, ran to the other side of the room, and bowed down, barking with her tail wagging. Apparently, Charles had enlisted a second alarm clock.

"Fine, fine! I'm getting up!" I huffed, stretching as I got out of bed.

"She's pretty good at her job, as long as no one is bribing her..." a stern voice said from the doorframe. I turned to see Billee leaning against the frame, arms crossed. My heart sank; I hoped she wasn't upset with me.

"I know, she really is. I'm sorry about last night... Surely you understand," I said, panic rising in my voice.

Billee gave a dismissive "Hmfh" before clicking her tongue. "Exactly what is it I should understand? Just curious, since I was the one who got chewed out by the professor." Her tone suggested that Logan's excuses hadn't won her over, but sticking to the story seemed like the best option.

"You know, Logan just wanted to—"

Before I could finish, she laughed and turned away. "Right... Whatever you say. C'mon, Gloom," she commanded, heading back to the dining hall.

"Whatever you say," I muttered under my breath as I closed and locked the door, preparing to get dressed to face the day ahead.

    Logan had mentioned that there were clothing options stocked in my room, so I made my way to the elegant dresser against the right wall by the door. My fingers glided over the smooth, intricately carved wood, and I couldn't help but smile. My mother used to adore delicate wood carvings like this. My memories of home were fleeting, mostly hazy fragments of steel furniture from the labs or rough-hewn wooden logs from the forest. This dresser, however, felt oddly familiar, as if I had encountered something like it before.

I struggled to recall much from my early years—just snippets like playing catch with my family or attending church on Sundays. Beyond that, my memories were a blur, especially after the day Striker had found me, frightened and alone. He had told me my parents were casualties in some fight, and that the X-Men were power-hungry monsters. Yet, as I settled into this new life, I began to question whether his stories were true.

I opened the top drawer and found a selection of tops and pants. After sifting through a few options, I chose a pair of black pants similar to those I had been given yesterday, along with a black tank top that was a bit too short, exposing an inch of skin above the waistband. Groggily, I moved to the small closet, where I grabbed a cozy black zip-up with hot pink stitching that matched the fur at the base of my ears. Typically, I wouldn't have drawn attention to my ears, but everyone here carried their unique features with such confidence, and I wanted to embrace that for myself. Besides, I had noticed Logan's frequent glances at them.