The local news droned on the tv in the background, as Alice lounged on the couch reading 'Anna Karenina' in Russian. Since vampires could not sleep, one had to find new ways to occupy their time. For Alice it was reading, learning new languages, playing violin, composing music no one would ever hear, dabbling at painting, and lately she had taken to swimming laps in the lake. Boredom was a problem, but she liked her routine.   

It was 6:00 am, and the news anchor man on the tv looked worn out in HD, as he babbled on about the local Mayoral elections, the closing of the factory in the town over, where to get flu shots, and that the local police caught the suspects who cherry-bombed all the mailboxes on Magnolia Street. The weather girl was looking way to chipper for six in the morning, as she explained today would be mild temperatures, 30% chance of rain, that autumn was in full swing, and she was looking forward to this weeks sun filled days. 

It was September 4th, and only a week into the new semester at Gringore. Alice was teaching two classes in the late afternoon, but the rest of her day was basically free. She dogeared the page she was on and closed her book. She smelled like the lake, after swimming laps in it for three hours last night, she really needed a long shower. Getting off the couch she placed her book down on the coffee table, next to the stack of Latin papers she had graded earlier. She gathered the two empty wine glasses and a teacup, and put them in the sink in the kitchen. She sighed looking at the mess of dishes in her sink, and added the cups to the ever growing pile. She rarely ate anything at home but, tea, and wine glasses were in abundance around her home. 

Her house was located on a quite street, full of retired people, and couples over 60. She had lived at, 382 Rosewood Ave, for eleven years now. The three bedroom, two bath, old yellow colonial was her haven from the chaos of Tellmore, and the unsuspecting Montaville.  Her house was clean, but on the cluttered side, with books piled on tables and the floors, painted canvases leaning on walls, and potted plants galore. For lack of a better description it resembled a Anthropologie store, with extra eclectic clutter.

In the bathroom she turned the shower on. Undressing as she waited for the water to become hot. Looking in the mirror, a tall plain Jane was what Alice saw. She had always liked her dark brown eyes, and the shape for her lips, but she thought her chin was to big, and her nose was to thin. The mirror began to fog from the steam of the shower. Stepping into the shower she planned out her day, and went over her lecture for this afternoons classes.  

45 Minutes later she stepped out of the shower, smelling of lavender soap, and shampoo. Wrapped in a soft ivory towel she walked into her closet. Alice's wardrobe consisted of clean florals, pastels, and high-end basics. Hanging in her closet were; knee length skirts, soft blouses, sheer button ups, satin camisoles, tailored slacks, simple dresses, vintage cardigans, lace lingerie, knit sweaters, and one pair of paint stained jeans. She changed into her [url=https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/0d/8e/7c/0d8e7c22dd52e7457d3f1ecf373aa2e7.jpg]outfit[/url] for the day. Dawning her beige slacks, powder blue blouse, butter yellow flats, and hand embroidered cardigan. She hung her wet towel on the door handle, and walked over to her vanity, putting on her pearl necklace, and spritzing on some vanilla lavender perfume. With a few bobby-pins she quickly pinned her hair up into a messy chignon. 

It was almost 8:00 am bye the time she finished her cup of cinnamon tea. Alice packed up her old leather satchel with the graded papers, her cell, ipod, and wallet. It was chilly out this morning, and smelled like the beginnings of autumn, the trees had yet to change color. She grabbed her coat off the rack next to her doorway, and put on a hat. Riding her bike down main street, she made her way to Gringore. 

[b]Gringore is covered by a glamour, so humans only see the old abandoned state hospital. Only supernaturals see what is really there, a grand Victorian building, [url=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/NorthernMichiganAsylumCTraverseCityMI.JPG]Gringore[/url] is the only official school where supernaturals come together to learn. In addition to the glamour to ward off humans, there is also a protection spell cast on Gringore that makes humans who wonder to close feel sick the closer the get the worse they feel. [/b]

[b]The interior of Gringore is enormous, with several corridors and hallways adorned with stone arches, and column. Classically decorated, it is reminiscent of the art nouveau period. It does not look anything like a normal school, with its stained glass windows, hand carved mahogany doors, and grand crystal chandeliers. The dorms are located in the west wing, and are more modern in appearance, they are all two to a room. And resemble a studio apartment with a loft.  [/b]  

Alice walked into Gringore, and made her way to her [url=http://brookegiannetti.typepad.com/.a/6a00e554d7b8278833016300584f1f970d-800wi]office[/url]. It was located on the third floor, and was really small, but is had a balcony overlooking the courtyard. She was given the option of switching to a bigger one in the basement when she got promoted to head of the language department, but she like her tiny place. Taking off her coat, she hung it over the back of her chair, and then placed her hat on the desk. Her first class started at 4:00 pm, and it was only about 8:30 in the morning, so she need to kill time. 

Walking down the stairs she made her way to the library. Gringore Library was huge, and had the second biggest incantus book collection in all of america. There was a section for everything, and it was easy to get lost. Alice made her way through the isles of books, stopping in the music history section. She scanned the titles, not really looking for anything in particular.