Disclaimer: I do not own House of Anubis, the characters in it, or the locations used.

Warning: This fanfiction is dark. I nearly rated it M. It's about a girl who has been abused - physically and sexually - since she was young. There will be no sexually explicit scenes in this, no detailed memories of actual beatings, but it could easily still trigger those who can be triggered. Proceed with caution. And just to put it out there to be sure, I do not approve of what has been done to poor Nina. At all. I do not approve of that sort of thing being done to anyone at any age. I will put a note at the top of the chapter when I think there may be anything more triggering than usual.

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm Definition of a Writer. You can call me Definition, a lot of people do. Please read the warning above before you read. This fanfiction will be updated once every 7 - 10 days. And on we go!

Nina POV

The bruises were easier to hide this time. Less concealer, less money wasted, and all in all a good start to the day.

It was almost funny how twisted my good days were.

Almost.

"Put your concealer on now, girl. I don't waste my money on you for nothing. We're leaving for the airport soon." I flinched, not having noticed his appearance in my doorway. I had to wonder if he'd stood there long enough to see my smile.

He didn't like it when I smiled.

Pushing my stray thoughts away, I nodded and quickly put it on. The last thing I wanted was a beating before my departure. He left, but I could still hear him stumbling drunkenly down the hallway. I wasn't sure if I should get into the car with him, yet I always did in the end.

At least today would be my final ride in the car that reeked of alcohol and drugs. Today was my escape. Today was the beginning of my freedom.

I just had to wonder how long my freedom would last.

X

"Welcome to the Academy, Ms. Martin."

The taxi driver's words woke me, and I quickly shot up in my seat. Glancing around in a disoriented manner, I did my automatic check on my surroundings and myself. I never fell asleep in public, especially around strangers. Especially around male strangers. But he was driving, and I would have woken if he'd stopped the car. I'd allowed myself a sense of security.

My walls were slipping.

"Ms. Martin?" the man repeated, turning to look at me. I averted my eyes immediately. Just because he wasn't here didn't mean his rules weren't still intact, and that was one of his oldest rules - never look a man in the eye. "We're here. You owe me 19 pounds." I nodded jerkily and took out the money, flinching when his hand brushed mine. The driver looked a little worried but said nothing as I climbed out of the car.

"You have a nice day, ma'am," he said once I'd grabbed my suitcase. I nodded in return, my eyes still at my feet, and he raised the window and drove off down the road until he was out of sight.

I was here.

British Fine Arts Academy was one of the highest schools in the U.K. It offered everything from theater to art to music, and they were known for winning most competitions between schools.

It was my high school art teacher who had submitted a few of my works and essays - without my permission, might I add.

It was me who was beaten for a several hours when I received the full scholarship, despite my pleas that I wasn't the one who had submitted the application. But it had been worth it. Because I was here, I was at my dream school, and I wouldn't have to go back to him for a whole school year.

The school towered above me, sending chills up and down my spine. I tugged on my sleeves before walking in, making sure all bruises were covered. My suitcase that I pulled along beside me was ridiculously light; it held only a few long sleeved shirts and two pairs of jeans. At least I was a good girl.

Bad girls got nothing at all.

"Hello dear," said the lady at the front desk when the door closed behind me. "How can I help you?" I slid my slip of paper across the desk in response.

My name is Nina Martin. I'm 16, and I'm a new student. I'm not sure where to go.

"Ah, Nina! I was told about you. You don't speak, correct?" I nodded. "Yes, you're the one I'm thinking of. You'll be staying at Anubis House. We've got a good mixture of students there - a musician and artist duo, a few other artists, an actor, a photographer, and one that's into fashion. Some are outgoing and some are shy, so I'm positive you'll find someone to get along with."

She spun around and looked through her file cabinet. "This contains your schedule, school map, rules, and housing information. You'll find Anubis on your map. School is already complete for the day, so no worries about that." She smiled warmly at me. "Good luck, dear."

Yes, good luck. I'd need it.

X

Anubis House was easy to find and I was walking through the yard in minutes. There were three students out on the front lawn by the sidewalk, laughing their heads off. One of them, a girl with streaks in her hair, had a camera and was snapping photos of the other two, who were striking over the top poses. She gave the camera to the brown haired girl a few seconds later, who put it in her bag and snatched the book from the third student, a boy. Their voices carried over the yard easily.

"A bit of light reading?" the brown haired girl teased.

"Just because it doesn't have Robert Pattinson on the cover doesn't mean it's not worth reading," the boy shot back with a grin. He snatched the book back and rubbed the cover lovingly. "It's the newest Theory of Research, Production, and Presentation of Abstract Art."

"That's a mouthful. Name it TRPPAA!" she suggested.

"Tirpay?" he clarified, standing just as I was walking by them... and slamming straight into me, sending us both sprawling to the concrete.

I choked out a gasp as fear punched me in the stomach, my vision going a little hazy as I fought off the urge to shut down. It took me a second to realize what happened - and to realize that the boy was on the ground and groaning.

Oh no.

Immediately, I was upright and grabbing his books, stacking them up in a neat pile as I tried to slow my breathing. By the time he had straightened, I was already done and holding them out to him with a pleading look on my face.

Please, please, please...

Last time I had messed up his things had been well over a year ago, when I broke a plate. The following beating hadn't been pretty and I had a scar on the inside of my arm for it - one of many. Would this boy beat me as well?

At last the boy took them from my shaking hands. I stood and held out my hands in surrender. Don't. Don't, please don't.

All the boy did was stare.

I averted my gaze, cursing myself internally. I'd been staring at him for more than a minute. That was twice in one day, and in addition to that, I'd knocked him down and probably gotten dirt on his books.

If he had been here, I would've been shoved into the closet for a week. But he was not here, and I didn't know how things went on this side of the ocean. Were the punishments even worse?

"Hey, it's okay," he finally said, smiling hesitantly. "I'm sorry for knocking you over. I'm super clumsy, these two can vouch for me." Something on me caught his attention, drawing a frown from him. "Oh, you're bleeding."

Indeed, there was a deep scrape on my knee, and blood was beginning to trickle down my leg. It wasn't nearly as bad as some of my past injuries. It barely stung. But the boy seemed to be worried, which confused me.

Then he did one of the few things that could've freaked me out any more.

"Here, let me help." He knelt in front of me, and reached out to brush gravel away from the wound. The alien position mixed with the approaching touch was my breaking point.

When his fingers brushed my knee, I ran.

The two girls and the boy stared after me as I raced up the steps and slammed the door behind me, uncaring of the pain radiating from my knee. That could be dealt with later.

I managed to find my way to my new room, and luckily was empty. The side that was mine was obvious - one side was completely bare, while the other was pure pink and clothes and makeup. I sat down on my bed, careful to avoid getting blood on the sheets, and put my head in my hands.

My first day, and I'd already managed to break three rules, one of them twice.

If this was an example of how my stay at the academy would go, I didn't know how long I would last.

A/N: And so Nina's journey begins. The chapters will grow to be 3,000 - 4,000 words. So no, the chapters won't be this short forever.

Reviews are love, dear readers. It helps that you get a preview of the next chapter for reviewing. And the person who reviews first gets two. Tempting enough?