The late summer sun shimmered over the courtyard of San Aurelio Secondary School, its old stone walls echoing with the laughter and chatter of returning students. For most, it was simply the start of another school year. But for three girls, it would be the first step into something far more extraordinary.
Bella Alvarez kept her gaze fixed on the cracked tiles as she crossed the courtyard, clutching her books tight against her chest as if they could shield her. The sunlight glinted in her long amber hair, but she tried not to notice anyone noticing her. Most kids ignored her, except when they whispered about her father—"the dullest teacher alive," the one who couldn't even afford a car.
Better invisible than a target.
She slid into a seat at the back of the classroom. Ahead of her, two girls giggled.
"Isn't she the teacher's kid?" one whispered.
"Mm-hmm. And didn't you hear? No magic at all. Not even a spark. Weird."
Bella hunched her shoulders and reread the same line in her notebook three times, cheeks burning.
In the courtyard, Nia Valemir was impossible to miss.
"Honestly, you people don't even know how to take care of your pets." Her voice rang sharp and amused, the kind that demanded attention.
Beside her stood Kiro, her massive gray wolf, his coat gleaming like smoke in sunlight. Students gave her a wide berth—half in awe, half in fear. Everyone knew Nia's family was rich—her father owned zoos, her mother was a renowned vet—but it wasn't just the money that set her apart. It was the molten gold glint of her eyes, the laugh that echoed like she knew a secret no one else did.
"She thinks she's better than everyone," one boy muttered.
Nia's gaze snapped to him. For just a moment, her pupils narrowed like a predator's. Kiro growled low in his throat. The boy paled and looked away. Nia smirked.
Near the gates, Amira Laurent sat alone on a bench, her thick chocolate-brown hair falling into her face as she scribbled in a notebook. Fresh from New York, her accent still clung to every word she spoke. Making friends felt impossible, so instead she sketched—foxes, wolves, cats—filling the margins of her homework with the companions she wished for.
Two girls passed by, whispering.
"Her parents are loaded. Did you see her shoes? Designer, for sure."
"Yeah, but she's so weird. Doesn't talk to anyone."
Amira pressed harder, her pencil carving dark lines into the fox's tail.
At first glance, the three girls had nothing in common. Yet at San Aurelio, the whispers were always the same:
"They're the ones without magic. Just ordinary. Powerless."
Bella heard it in the hallways.
Nia heard it in the courtyard.
Amira heard it when she walked into class.
Three girls who didn't belong.
When the final bell rang and the corridors began to empty, fate nudged them closer together.
Bella left the classroom, head down, only to bump shoulders with Amira at the stairwell. Papers scattered across the floor.
"Oh—sorry!" Amira blurted, scrambling to gather them. Her violet eyes flicked up, uncertain.
Bella knelt to help. "It's okay. Happens to me all the time."
Nia's voice cut through the hall. "Of course it does. You're both walking like you're half-asleep." She leaned lazily against the wall, Kiro at her side, golden eyes glinting with amusement.
Amira flushed. Bella stood a little taller.
For the first time, the three of them stood in a triangle—uneasy, wary, not knowing that soon their lives would be tangled forever.
If only they knew.
By the end of the week, they would stumble upon a secret buried beneath the school.
And the world would never call them powerless again.