Vitiosi Dei (Heritage of the Blood Book 2) by Brent Lee Markee

instructors and other people who worked at the school. Several other people also sat in chairs upon the stage. Shawnrik recognized one of them as the Headmistress, but he did not know the others.
                  Shawnrik only had a few bites left of his meat and cheese when he felt a vibration course through the gathering, much like the one that had been used to summon them here. He hadn't been expecting the kind of event that would have him on the edge of his seat, so he wasn't terribly disappointed when the welcoming dragged on from one speaker to the next.
              The first to address the throng of students was Headmistress Blackbriar, but she was only there long enough to say a few words of welcome and to announce the first official speaker of the evening. Harolinde Swiftfoot was apparently, as he liked to remind the gathering every few minutes, Dean of Students. Dean Swiftfoot was also one of the first true Elves that Shawnrik had ever seen, although he was pleased to note that the man wasn't one of the High Elves, like those that live in Eske'Taure.
                  The High Elves possessed a rather inflated opinion of themselves, and they had made it their mission to remove anyone with Elven blood who was tainted from the world. Always at the top of that list was anyone who possessed Elven blood who was not a full Elf. Once, long ago, all of the Elves had lived together. As the sect that sought the purification of the Elven race grew to power, the various factions split apart during a time that came to be referred to as The Cleansing.
                 
    Shawnrik's attention had been riveted on the Dean as he began speaking, part of him hoping that the man would say something that would reaffirm Shawnrik's faith in this place. But as Dean Swiftfoot's oration wore on, he found his attention wandering. The man certainly had a lot to say, but it was mostly about rules and etiquette.
                  Shawnrik's gaze fell upon a small group of girls around his age who had their heads together in quiet, yet animated conversation. The intensity with which they whispered made Shawnrik grin—or maybe that was because most of the girls were rather pretty. He only realized that he had been staring when Verrian poked him in the ribs and told him to focus.
                  Shawnrik had to wonder if it was a coincidence that Dean Swiftfoot was broaching the topic of fraternization at the same moment that his new roommate had poked him. He had no idea what fraternization was until he had listened to the Dean use it over and over again. From the context of the Dean’s speech, the meaning of the word became readily apparent. Irrationally, Shawnrik felt as if he were being singled out at that moment, and couldn't help the blush that radiated across his face. The Dean talked for five of the longest minutes that Shawnrik thought he had ever lived through before giving the podium over to the next speaker.
                  It turned out that the next speaker was a Half-Ogre by the name of Mr. Witherton. From the short speech that the large, balding man gave, Shawnrik learned that the man was the head of campus security. Mr. Witherton's speech gave Shawnrik the impression that campus security was there to keep the students in line more than they were there to keep them safe from outside aggressors. His sentences were short and clipped, as if he were talking to people who had already made the decision to break the rules, which maybe experience had taught him they were. Mr. Witherton finished by announcing a kindly looking Cloud Giant woman who was nearing her middle years—which meant that she was more than likely around one hundred and fifty to two hundred years old—by the name of Silvianna Stonebank.
                  Shawnrik quickly realized that Silvianna was a healer that worked for the Institute, but he couldn't figure out if she was a