Chapter 2: The Academy Gates (Continued - Final Part)
I retreated to the very last row of the auditorium, the shadows of the balcony overhead acting like a shield. From here, the world of Redpaveley looked like a blur of colors I didn't understand.
My father's face flashed in my mind—Drac. He had been so insistent about this move, so adamant that things would be different here. I remembered the way he had looked when he first mentioned the village leaders. He had spoken about Wolfie's family with a strange kind of respect, a look in his eyes I hadn't seen since my mother was alive. He had met her, of course. He'd seen the way she laughed, the way she seemed to command the very air around her with nothing but a smile.
"She has a light in her, Drayan," Drac had told me while we were unpacking the last of the crates. "A light that can conquer even the darkest hearts. You'll see."
I had ignored him then, thinking he was just being sentimental. But seeing her now, standing at the front of the hall, I realized my father wasn't just talking about a political alliance. He was trying to give me a reason to wake up in the morning. He wanted her warmth to melt the ice I'd spent years building around myself. But the irony was a jagged blade in my gut: by forcing this marriage, he was making me resent the very girl who made me feel alive.
The heavy oak doors at the front of the hall creaked shut, and the chatter died down to a low hum. A tall, imposing man with graying hair and a presence that felt like a physical weight stepped onto the stage. The Headmaster.
"Welcome," his voice boomed, amplified by a touch of magic that made the air vibrate. "To another year at Redpaveley Academy. We stand at a crossroads of history. Old debts are settled, and new foundations are being laid. This year is not just about magic or strength—it is about the bonds that hold us together."
I saw Wolfie tilt her head back, listening intently. She looked so natural there, so certain of her place in the world.
"In the coming months," the Headmaster continued, "you will see unions that have been decades in the making. Alliances between the moon and the night, between the earth and the sky. We are moving toward a future where no one has to stand alone."
The crowd erupted into polite applause, but my blood ran cold. Unions. Alliances. They were talking about me. They were talking about us.
I looked down at my hands, pale and trembling in the dim light. I wanted to be friends with her. I wanted to know why she liked cinnamon coffee and how she moved so fast. I wanted to tell her about my mother and the city and the hole in my chest. But as the Assembly went on, I realized the wall between us hadn't been built by my loneliness—it had been built by my father's signature.
I watched Wolfie clap, her eyes bright and hopeful, and a terrifying thought crossed my mind. What happens when she finds out I'm the 'contract' her father signed? Will she still think I'm more interesting than a pure-blood, or will I just be another cage she's trapped in?
I didn't stay for the end of the speech. I slipped out the back door, disappearing into the cold corridors of the Academy, a ghost once again.