The Royal Academy of Diavolo

                                    

                                          
Nyx threw her head back into the headrest of her car seat, taking a huge breath and letting it out in the form of an exaggerated groan of exasperation.
                          
"I don't wanna move or think anymore!" she whined as she lazily reached for the keys hanging from the ignition.
                          
"Just up a couple of flights of stairs and then I'm home," she coaxed herself, grabbing for the food delivery bag in the passenger seat before pushing the car door open.
                          
She pulled the hood of her raincoat over her head before stepping out into the cool and misty night air. Moving quickly, she made her way into the building, pushing her hood back once she was inside. Out of habit, she stopped to check the mail. She nabbed the three envelopes she found in her assigned box before heading up the stairs and into her small apartment. She sighed with relief once her door was locked back up and the lights were switched on.
                          
Home sweet home.
                          
Eager to plop down on the couch with some food, she made quick work of her "just got home" routine. She tossed the mail on the coffee table, hung up her coat and scarf, and headed to the kitchen to grab something quick to eat, too hungry to bother removing her shoes. Before long the microwave dinged and Nyx emerged from the too-small kitchen with a steamy plastic dish of cheesy chicken and rice and a bottle of water. She settled into the couch, swiping the TV remote from the coffee table and switching on the TV.
                          
Once her meal was had, she scooted up to the edge of the couch to turn her attention to the envelopes she'd tossed onto the coffee table moments earlier. The return address on one of the letters immediately caught her attention.
                          
Lord what? Diavolo? ...RAD? ...Devildom? What the hell? 
                          
Questions piled up in her mind before she could even pick up the oddly addressed letter. The paper making up the envelope felt thick and expensive to her hands. Her full name, "Nyx S. Ludos," was written in beautiful script in the center of the envelope, and that was it. No address, just her name.
                          
"Weird..." 
                          
She flipped it over and found it was wax sealed with a fancy crest imprint worthy of royalty.
                          
"Well, it is from a Lord supposedly. Great way to try selling it, I guess," she muttered just before carefully peeling off the seal so as to not break it and pulling out the letter within.
                          
"Congratulations!
                          
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at the Royal Academy of Diavolo.
                          
Please return this letter with your sign to confirm your participation.
                          
We are looking forward to welcoming you as part of our new exchange program.
                          
Yours sincerely,
                          
Diavolo"
                          
"Huh." She dropped the letter down on the coffee table, supporting her weight with her elbows on her knees to lean over and stare down at it. "This is obviously a joke, but from who?" 
                          
She rubbed the top corner of the letter between her thumb and finger. "And who would go through this much trouble. This paper isn't exactly cheap, and that seal looked about as legit as it gets."
                          
Nyx reeled back abruptly after watching a red droplet fall and splat onto the bottom of the page, right over a blank line meant for a signature. Her hand instinctively touched just above her lips to check for blood. Sure enough, the blood droplet had come from her nose.
                          
"What the hell?!" she exclaimed as she rushed to the bathroom to tend to her random nose bleed.
                          
To her relief, the bleeding stopped as quickly as it had started. This didn't stop her from gently pinching the bridge of her nose in the mirror a few times to check for any soreness or swelling. She dabbed up the blood with a tissue before washing off her face with cool water.