The nymphs in the Ivory Academy

Freshman year: Greenish rays age

        THE east grew rosy with the coming day. The early morning sun in the Ivory Academy was rising, its first stream shining through the curtain, right upon Sophie’s cheeks. She was still asleep and dreamy, though the bright sunrays were shining apon her rosy cheeks.

       In her dream she had returned to the school opening ceremony yesterday morning. How cheerful she was then, singing the school song and hugging her new friends under the Marble Statue of the Academy. Then to her great amazement the Statue opened his marble mouth and started to speak: “Dear new friends, why are you so happy?”

       The students looked up at the Statue and said with one voice: “Because we have passed the College Entrance Exam and have become students of Ivory Academy.

        The Statue inquired: “Why do you admire Ivory Academy?”

        Sophie came briskly forward and replied: “As a child, I learnt that Ivory Academy is the Premier's university.”

         The statue asked: “Then why do you admire Ivory Academy simply because it is the old school of the Premier?”

         “The Premier is the pride of Ivory Academy, and so we take pride in our school.” answered Sophie, quite bewildered with so many “Why” s.

         The Statue smiled, curly his mouth. He said: “Dear schoolmates, welcome to Ivory Academy. I love Ivory Academy, and I hope you love her as much as I do.”

         Sophie wanted to raise a difficult question, when the door flew open and——

           “COW! Sisters! Seven o’clock already!”

           It was Cathy’s demanding. Sophie folded wings of dream and roamed to reality. Cathy’ s figure appeared at the door, flushing and sweating from morning exercise. She looked as energetic as a morning lark in the morning sunshine.

           “Ah, God, I say COW again.” complained Cathy as she came in, her dark, twinkling eyes flashing and her little red lips panting. She was a disciplined child, always being ready to check her manners.

         Cathy put her bowl on the desk and dashed to Lily's upper bunk. Lily was staring blankly in her quilts. Having just woken from her slumber, her cheeks looked rosy and her little eyes were twinkling, clear and bright. She was as fresh and lovely as a bud in the morning.

         Cathy crossed her hands on her waist, raised her head, pretending to be angry: “Lily, how lazy you are! Every day you ask me to buy breakfast for you! This is the last breakfast for you! Next time you can call Helen to serve you!”

         “Metal Disease Sufferer.” A sour voice called out from the red curtain beside the bright window. Helen was speaking with Shan Xi accent.

         This time Cathy lost her aim for complaint. She dashed to Helen and stroke her with her fists, until she begged for pardon. At the moment, Lily opened her sweet little mouth and begged repeatedly：”Cathy, Cathy, kind-hearted Cathy, a great many thanks to dear Cathy.” So Cathy was at her wit’s end and tomorrow she had to buy breakfast for her again. 

         Down in front of the mirror, Sophie was in her long slim blue skirt, smoothing the pleats and looking at the white chemise. Then she combed her two short handles. Suddenly, Helen’ s large head looked from the mirror, combing her loose, slightly yellow hair and winking her large eyes. She looked extremely mature in her lavender dress, but when she spoke she sounded childish and lovely: “The first class in college, I hope the professor is a handsome guy!”

         “Wouldn’t you want Lin Yilun to be your professor?” said Linda, as she walked past holding her basin.

          “Ridiculous! Lin Yilun is my love bird, my lover in my dream, how can he be my teacher?”

          By this time there had arisen a shout of amazement at this statement. Open minded Helen never hide her love for handsome guys. Influenced by this kind of atmosphere, Lucy could not help to sing Lin Yilun’ s Love Bird right on her upper bunk: “My beloved girl flew off, and the girl who loves me has not emerged yet…” Her greatest hobby was to sing a song loudly in the early morning on her upper bunk. Her skill of singing overwhelmed everyone and the girls even asked her to teach them to sing popular songs.

           But now there was no time to sing. It was already half past seven. In a hurry Sophie ran to the retail shop and bought some Mungbean Biscuits from the aunt. In the corridor many girls were wandering in and out at will, whistling and chanting. In the center was Sophie herself, busy, cordial, perhaps a little confused as to what was going on. She had been looking forward to her college life for many years, and it was time for her college to unveil itself. She was ignorant what college meant to her, and why she should love the Premier’s school. She was ignorant that she was to be plunged into a spiritual awakening that changed the course of her life.

         When she returned to the dorm, everyone was gone. She thrust Mungbean Biscuits in to her mouth as she piled up her new textbooks into her schoolbag. Of course, though it was high time she left for the classroom, she did not forget to greet her ten dolls on her bunk. They were the elves who accompanied her ever since her childhood.