The brazier smoke still clung to Aria's cloak as the crowd poured back through the academy halls. The stones echoed with footsteps and voices, but the air carried something sharper now, her name, whispered, spat, repeated over and over.
"Aria Gray."
"The nameless bonded with Kaelen, "
"It's a sham. Has to be."
Her hood shadowed her face, but it couldn't muffle the burn of their stares. Everywhere she turned, eyes followed, some curious, some hostile, some openly hungry, like predators scenting weakness.
Liora broke through the throng, breathless, curls wild around her face. "Aria!" She grabbed her arm, tugging her out of the current of bodies. "Don't listen to them. They're just, "
"Angry," Aria whispered, pulse racing. Her chest still ached where the bond had seared, every beat reminding her she wasn't free of it. "They're furious."
Liora's grin was quick, meant to reassure, but her eyes betrayed unease. "They're jealous. Kaelen's bond was always going to be a storm. And now… well, you're lightning in it."
Aria swallowed hard. Lightning burned bright, but it also burned fast.
A group of older heirs passed, their laughter sharp. One muttered loud enough to carry: "No-line trash, bound to the prince. She won't last a week."
Heat rose in Aria's chest, her wolf pressing against her skin in answer to the insult. She clenched her jaw, forcing it down. Not here. Not yet.
The hall opened into a wide gallery, moonlight spilling through arched windows. The marble floor glowed pale, each step echoing louder than she wanted.
Aria tried to focus on breathing, on keeping her hood low. But everywhere, the academy felt smaller, its walls closing in with each whisper, each glance.
And beneath it all, the bond.
Kaelen's presence pulsed at the edge of her senses, constant, inescapable. She didn't need to see him to feel him. The connection tugged like a chain, reminding her he was near, watching, even when he wasn't in sight.
Liora squeezed her arm gently. "Stay close to me, okay? Wolves here circle the weak. Show them you've got teeth, or they'll tear you apart."
Aria lifted her gaze, finally, meeting the moonlight through the high window. She didn't feel like she had teeth. She felt like prey walking into a den.
And every wolf in the academy knew it.
The gallery stretched long and hollow, moonlight slanting across the marble floor. Aria quickened her pace toward the stairwell that would lead her to the dormitory wing, head bowed, breath sharp.
But the tug in her chest deepened. Heavy. Near.
And then he stepped out of the shadows.
Kaelen Draven.
His presence filled the hall like a storm cloud rolling in, silencing even the faint whispers that had followed her. He moved without hurry, but with the certainty of someone who knew the space belonged to him.
Aria froze.
Liora's grip tightened on her sleeve, but Kaelen's eyes locked only on her. Gray shot through with faint silver, cold and merciless.
"You run," he said, voice low but carrying. "Even when fate ties you at my side."
The words curled around her throat, heavy as iron. She forced herself to straighten, though her heart thundered. "I don't run," she answered quietly. "I walk where I choose."
Something flickered in his eyes, interest, maybe, or the sharp edge of amusement. But his expression never softened. He stepped closer, and the bond thrummed, answering his nearness.
"You'll find," Kaelen murmured, "choice means little, here. The bond strips it away. The weak collapse. The strong endure."
Around them, heirs had gathered, pretending to linger by the windows, the pillars, watching with keen eyes. Waiting.
Aria felt their stares burn into her, felt their breath catch at every word exchanged. If she faltered now, she would be marked as prey for the rest of her time here.
Her wolf pressed against her skin, restless, resisting his dominance. She clenched her fists, grounding herself in the sting of her nails.
"I'm not weak," she said. The words came out steadier than she expected. "And I don't collapse."
Kaelen's gaze sharpened, the faintest tilt of his head like a predator studying unusual prey. He leaned in, just enough that the air between them seemed to burn.
"Then prove it."
The silence that followed was thick, electric.
Then, as suddenly as he'd appeared, Kaelen straightened, breaking the closeness. He turned without another word, his cloak sweeping behind him, and walked away down the moonlit hall.
But the bond still thrummed in Aria's chest, leaving her breathless, shaken.
And she knew: this was only the beginning of his tests.
The dormitory wing hummed with low voices and the slam of doors as heirs settled into their quarters. The long hall smelled of cedar polish and smoke, but beneath it lingered musk and tension, the scent of wolves forced to share a den.
Aria's boots scuffed softly as she followed Liora down the corridor. She felt eyes track her every step, whispers coiling through doorways left half-open.
"That's her."
"The bond-girl."
"She won't last a moon."
Liora tried to keep her close, her voice bright. "We'll be fine once we get to our room. Third on the left."
But as they reached it, the door swung open from the inside. Three girls stood there, older heirs, their crests gleaming in silver threads on their uniforms. They blocked the threshold with languid ease, eyes raking over Aria as if inspecting prey delivered to their doorstep.
"Well, well," the tallest one drawled, a proud wolf's smirk curving her lips. "The nameless girl who caught the prince's bond."
Her companions snickered. One leaned lazily against the doorframe, arms crossed. "Caught, or tricked? Maybe she slipped something into the circle. That would explain it."
Aria forced her shoulders square, though her pulse raced. She couldn't show fear. Not here, not now. "Excuse me," she said evenly. "You're in the way."
The tallest heir arched a brow, amused. "Bold. Do you think boldness will save you when Kaelen grows bored?"
The words hit sharply, and murmurs rose from nearby rooms, doors cracking wider. More faces appeared, eager to watch.
Liora shifted closer, whispering, "Don't bite, "
But Aria's wolf pressed hot in her chest, furious at the insult. She drew in a breath, holding it tight, then released it slowly. Her voice came calm, steady. "Boldness keeps me alive. That's all I need."
For a moment, silence hung between them. The tallest heir's smirk faltered, just a fraction. Then she laughed, flicking her hair back as she stepped aside. "Alive, for now."
The girls moved past, their laughter trailing sharply in the air. The audience of heirs slowly drifted back behind their doors, whispers still alive but softer now.
Liora tugged Aria inside quickly, shutting the door with a firm slam.
Aria exhaled, muscles trembling. The dorm wasn't safe; it was another battlefield.
And night had only just begun.
The door clicked shut, muting the noise of the corridor, but the tension clung to Aria's skin. She leaned back against the wall, dragging in a breath.
Liora lit a lantern on the desk, its glow casting soft amber light across the small room. Two narrow beds stood opposite each other, trunks pushed neatly underneath. On the far wall, a high window framed a slice of the moon.
"Welcome home," Liora said lightly, though her tone didn't match her forced smile. She flopped onto one of the beds, then propped herself up on her elbows. "Not exactly welcoming, I know."
Aria sank onto the other bed, shoulders heavy. "They hate me already."
"They don't hate you," Liora corrected, voice softer. "Not yet. But they fear what your bond means. That makes them dangerous."
Aria looked up sharply. "Why? I didn't ask for it."
"Doesn't matter." Liora sat up, her expression serious now. "This academy is all about dominance. Who holds the strongest wolf, the purest bloodline, the clearest path to power? Kaelen Draven was always at the top. Untouchable. Every heir here either wanted to claim him or tear him down. And now…" She gestured toward Aria. "Now they'll come for you instead."
Aria's chest tightened. "I'm not even from a line they'd recognize. I made up my name to hide that fact. How could I be a threat?"
Liora's gaze lingered on her, too long, as if she wanted to pry deeper. But she only shook her head. "It doesn't matter what you are. The bond makes you his equal, whether anyone likes it or not. And they don't like it."
Aria swallowed hard, staring down at her hands. Equal. The word felt like a chain, not a gift.
Liora leaned closer, her voice dropping. "You need to be careful, Aria. Every word you say, every step you take, they'll be watching. Testing. Some will try to break you just to see Kaelen's reaction. Some will want to use you against him."
The lantern hissed faintly, the flame swaying.
Aria met her friend's eyes, the weight of the warning settling heavy in her chest. "And Kaelen? What does he want?"
Liora smirked faintly, though her eyes betrayed unease. "That's the real question, isn't it?"
The dormitory eventually quieted, one door after another thudding shut, until only the groans of settling beams and the occasional wolf-howl from the mountains broke the silence.
Aria lay on her side, eyes open in the dark, staring at the slice of moon framed by the high window.
Sleep wouldn't come. Not with the bond's pull gnawing at her chest, steady and insistent, like an invisible thread tugging her toward Kaelen's presence somewhere deeper in the academy. Every breath seemed to carry his scent, sharp and cold as steel.
She rolled onto her back, squeezing her eyes shut. Forget him. Bury it. He can't see you break.
But the bond didn't fade. It throbbed, stubborn as a heartbeat.
Beside her, Liora snored softly, cocooned in blankets. Aria envied her peace.
Then, voices.
Low, muffled, just beyond the door. Aria stilled, holding her breath.
"…can't believe the circle chose her."
"Chosen, or forced? Either way, it's wrong. A no-line girl bound to Kaelen? She'll ruin the order of things."
A sharp whisper, bitter with envy: "Then we make sure she doesn't last. A fall from the training ledges, a night alone in the woods… accidents happen all the time here."
The others chuckled softly, cruelly.
Aria's blood ran cold.
Her wolf growled low inside her, a sound only she could hear, demanding she fight, that she tear the door open and silence them. But she couldn't, not now. Not when revealing herself would only feed their suspicions.
The whispers faded down the hall, laughter trailing like smoke.
Aria let out the breath she'd been holding, heart pounding against her ribs.
Danger wasn't coming; it was already here.
And with the bond tying her to Kaelen, she had no way to hide from it.
The moonlight shifted across the wall, pale and merciless. Aria curled tighter under her thin blanket, her wolf restless, and told herself one fragile truth:
Tomorrow, she had to be sharper. Stronger.
Or she wouldn't survive the week.